Russia, Roland-Garros, Nadal: Everything you always wanted to know about Daria Kasatkina (but never had time to find out) – updated after 2024 Ningbo title
Daria Kasatkina is one of the most gifted players on the WTA Tour. Here are the answers to some questions about the Russian
Daria Kasatkina in San Jose in August 2022
Image Credit: Icon SMI/ Panoramic
Who is Daria Kasatkina?
Daria Kasatkina is a Russian tennis player who competes on the professional circuit. She is a gifted shotmaker and a creative personality, both on and off the court.
What did Kasatkina achieve at the Ningbo Open in 2024?
The Russian came from 3-0 down in the final set to defeat countrywoman Mirra Andreeva 6-0, 4-6, 6-4 in the final and win the 2024 Ningbo Open title.
It was the eighth WTA career singles title for Kasatkina and her second of the 2024 season.
How old is DARIA Kasatkina?
Kasatkina, who measures is 1.70 m (5 ft 7 in) tall, was born on May 7, 1997.
At what age did she first play tennis?
Kasatkina was introduced to tennis at the age of six by her brother Alexsandr, who also serves as her fitness trainer. She was born to athletic parents who were nationally ranked in athletics (mother) and ice hockey (father).
Did Kasatkina win a junior Grand Slam title?
Kasatkina excelled as a junior, winning the 2014 Roland-Garros girls singles title. As a junior, she peaked at No 3 in the rankings.
What is Daria Kasatkina’s highest ranking?
Kasatkina’s highest ranking has been No 8, which she first achieved in August 2022. Her current ranking and ranking history are available on her WTA Tour profile page.
How much prize money has she won in her career?
As of October 21, 2024, the Russian has won more than $12.45 million in career prize money. You can find her updated prize money stats on her WTA Tour profile page.
How many WTA titles has Daria Kasatkina won?
Kasatkina has won eight WTA singles titles and one WTA doubles title in her career so far. The Russian won her first two titles at Charleston in 2017 and Moscow in 2018.
She enjoyed a resurgence in 2021, claiming two WTA titles in the first three months of the year – the Phillip Island Trophy in Melbourne and the St. Petersburg Open in Russia. In 2022, she reached the semi-finals of the WTA 1000 Italian Open, and went on to win the Mubadala Silicon Valley Classic in early August.
On August 28, 2022, Kasatkina won her second title of the season with a win at the WTA 250 event in Granby, Canada where she defeated good friend Daria Saville in the final.
In April 2024, Kasatkina reached the final of the Charleston Open, a 500-level tournament she had won back in 2017. She lost the title match 6-2, 6-1 to Danielle Collins.
Kasatkina then won her first title of the season at the Eastbourne International in June 2024. It was her fourth appearance in a final that season. Kasatkina beat Leylah Fernandez 6-3, 6-4 in the final. Her most recent title came in Ningbo in October 2024, where she beat Mirra Andreeva to win the title.
What is Daria Kasatkina’s best performance at a Grand Slam?
Kasatkina reached the semi-finals of Roland Garros 2022. She also made it to the quarter-finals of Roland-Garros and Wimbledon in 2018.
She has made it to the fourth round of the US Open and the third round of the Australian Open.
Who is Daria Kasatkina’s current partner?
In a candid interview with the Russian sports site, sports.ru, Kasatkina confirmed she is bisexual. In a YouTube documentary released in July 2022, Kasatkina said that she currently had a girlfriend, the ice skater Natalia Zabiiako.
Does Daria Kasatkina have a vlog?
Daria Kasatkina is a keen vlogger along with Zabiiako. At Roland-Garros in 2023, she explained: “This is how I get away a little bit from the pressure thinking about the matches and everything, so I’m taking it as a little bit of not distraction; distraction in a good way. Like a little bit of an art thing.
“Natalia is taking it very serious. She’s really editing music, cutting everything, trying to implement new things always to see if it’s the problem with the sound or with the picture. Like, she’s really taking a lot of care.”
She added: “All these parts are always behind the scenes. Nobody knows about it. 95% of the fans, they see us as tennis players on the tennis court, and they don’t know who we are outside of the court and how we live and what’s going on, actually, behind the doors, behind the tennis court doors.
“I think it’s nice. If I would be, for example, the fan of some sport, I would definitely like to see more about it, more about the personalities of the players. Because we are definitely one person on the tennis court as a tennis player and completely different person outside of the court, and not many people know that.”
Who is Daria Kasatkina’s coach?
She has more recently been working with Flavio Cipolla.
The Russian was previously coached by Spaniard Carlos Martinez, who she credits for fine-tuning her competitive mindset. “He’s pretty strict,” she said about Martinez in an interview with Tennis.com. “We’re working on many things, especially the consistency. He’s also a very nice person. You spend 85 percent of the year with your team, so it’s important to have good people around.” However, their working relationship ended at the start of 2023.
Who are Daria Kasatkina’s idols?
The Russian is a big fan of 22-time Grand Slam winner Rafael Nadal.
“I watched all Rafael Nadal matches on television, when he won the French Open in 2005. I just fell in love with his playing style and his character. I have always been inspired by him. I love everything about him, how he plays and how he behaves. For me he is the perfect example to be as a sportsman. When I watch him, he plays with a lot of spin. I was trying to play the same,” revealed Kasatkina.
Is Kasatkina on social media?
The Russian is active on social media and updates her fans via Instagram (where she is followed by more than 353,000 followers as of October 21, 2024), X/ Twitter (more than 46,000 followers) and Facebook (more than 50,000 followers).
What does Daria Kasatkina think about the Russia-Ukraine war?
Kasatkina said in the summer of 2022 that the war was “a full-blown nightmare”. She also praised the LTA for their provision for Ukrainian players during the grass-court swing, saying, “They cannot go back home, they have to be always on the road and they have to pay all the time for accommodation so I think it makes a lot of sense to do this kind of thing.”
