Tuesday at the Kremlin Cup brought a mixture of emotions to Daria Kasatkina at the end of what has been a roller-coaster season.
In the first round of the tournament, the defending champion crashed out 6-1, 6-4, to fifth seed Dayana Yastremska. Making It her 21st loss on the tour this year and bringing to an end what has been a largely disappointing season for the 22-year-old. She has only managed to win back-to-back matches at just two tournaments in 2019 with her best run taking place earlier this month. At the China Open she reached the quarter-finals before losing to Caroline Wozniacki.
“I am struggling to find the right words to accurately describe my season and not be censored,” Kasatkina joked after her latest loss. “I can’t even say that there have been ups and downs in this season, because it had only downs.”
“I am so happy that this season is finally over, and the next one will start from scratch. I do not need to win a lot of points to confirm my place in the rankings. The road, so to say, is free. I just want to forget it, draw conclusions, learn from mistakes and prepare for the new season.”
The lull is a stark contrast to 12 months ago where she was at a ranking high of 10th in the world. In 2018 she managed to achieve seven wins over top 10 players and reached the quarter-finals of two grand slam tournaments.
So where has it gone wrong for the Russian? Was Kasatkina a victim of pressure, poor preparation, bad form or a mixture of all three?
“There were many moments, not only in terms of tennis, these were psychological and life moments. Everything somehow fell for one year. It happens, I hope that next year there will be a “detente” in this regard, and everything will be different.” She explained.
Elaborating further, Kasatkina admits that her top 10 breakthrough could have also had an impact on her. Although she refuses to pinpoint it as a prime reason.
“Perhaps this subconsciously played a role. I scrolled some expectations in my head while stepping on court. In any case, this is a very valuable experience, and I’m happy that I got it in this “kind of young” age. I hope that this will help me a lot in the future.”
Tasked with trying to rejuvenate the Russian is coach Carlos Martinez. A former top 200 doubles player from Spain who has previously worked with Svetlana Kuznetsova. The two have been working together since June.
“He said that he likes the way I play. Our vision of the game goes in one direction, we have no conflicts in this regard.” Kasatkina commented about her latest coach.
“In addition, his academy is located in Barcelona, where I have always dreamed of living. I am glad that we work together.”
As a result of her early exit from Moscow, Kasatkina is set to drop down to 70th in next week’s rankings. She is now in danger of ending the season in her worst year-end ranking since 2014.
