“At the beginning of the year, it was hard to believe that I would become the eighth in the world”

One of the main results of the women’s tennis season was Daria Kasatkina’s record result over the past seven years for Russian women, who ends the year in eighth place in the world rankings. In an interview with a Kommersant correspondent Evgeny Fedyakov semi-finalist Roland Garros, who won two WTA titles this summer, explained the main reasons for her progress, shared her feelings about participating in the WTA Finals and told how she will prepare for the next season.

– If in January someone said that in November Daria Kasatkina would be so high in the rating, would you believe it?

– Probably not. At the beginning of the year, it was hard to believe that I would become the eighth in the world.

– Then how do you explain why this season was the best in your career?

– In the training process, we did not change much. It’s just that right now the work done by our team for more than three years, not only on the court and on physical condition, but also mentally, has yielded results. However, I still have no end of such work, so I will try to develop in order to become even better next year.

— How would you characterize the current stage of cooperation with Spaniard Carlos Martinez, who has been coaching you since the summer of 2019?

“I am more than satisfied with our work. I really like the way we work and the result. It’s great when you work with the same person for so long! For me, this is generally an ideal option, because I don’t really like changing coaches and constantly looking for a common language with new people.

– After you lost to Iga Schwentek and defeated Coco Gauff at the WTA Finals in Fort Worth, you were only two points short of the tie-break of the third installment in the meeting with future champion Caroline Garcia. To what extent are you satisfied with the result shown at your debut final tournament?

– You always want to win. And when the semi-finals are so close, it’s hard to accept defeat. But for tennis players, the group stage system is unusual, and I am pleased that after the first match I was able to pull myself together, convince myself that the tournament is not over yet. Now I missed quite a bit to get out of the group, so I hope that if I get to the final tournament next time, everything will turn out in my favor.

Was the meeting with Garcia the most dramatic for you this season?

– Judging only by the score of the third set, then, probably, we can say so. But I would still consider for myself the most dramatic and offensive defeat from Uns Jabir in the semi-final of Rome, when I missed the match point. In such situations, you experience not the most pleasant sensations. At the same time, I am grateful for that match, because thanks to it I made many correct conclusions and soon I was able to play the semi-final at Roland Garros.

– Having lost just a little bit to Garcia, could you assume that you are losing to the future champion?

– You can never say in advance how a tournament can end, especially one in which the best play. But now, when I know who won, I felt even a little more offended. After all, it turns out that I also had a chance to win. Therefore, to be honest, I want to forget this story, live in the present and prepare for the future.

– Was there a moment during this season when you suddenly realized that you had made a breakthrough and were capable of much?

– Yes, it happened in Rome after the match with Paula Badosa (at that time the third racket of the world, whom Kasatkina beat in the 1/8 finals.— “b”). It was there that I felt new strength in myself, I realized that I could do more than I thought before. And indeed, things went much better. I had some good results, including the Roland Garros semi-finals.

– And how highly do you rate the victory at the tournament in San Jose, where you were able to beat two rivals from the top ten at once – Arina Sobolenko and the same Paula Badosa?

– Again, when you beat such players, you remember these matches and become much more confident. The tournament in San Jose turned out to be strong in composition. And I was very happy after the victory, because if I myself were a tennis fan, I would not have named my name in the list of favorites.

– You already have six titles in singles, and only one in pairs, won with Elena Vesnina in 2015 at the Kremlin Cup. What explains the fact that, unlike Veronika Kudermetova, who finished in the singles ranking in ninth place, you play very little in doubles, and this year after the Australian Open you have not played a single match in pairs?

– Firstly, a couple is an additional burden. Secondly, I don’t like playing it very much, because I don’t understand doubles tennis very well. In general, I perceive the couple more as a training session, and in Australia I played it because at the beginning of the season I wanted to spend more time on the court. And then the circumstances developed. At one of the tournaments, I showed up for a pair according to a single rating, and then withdrew (according to the WTA rules, this should be punished.— “b”). And so I could not play, for example, in Cincinnati, where we planned to perform together with Anya Kalinskaya.

– How much fatigue has accumulated at the end of the season and how long will your vacation last?

– Physically, in the fall, I felt great, which is good news. But mentally it was difficult, because in general the year turned out to be difficult. My holidays, as usual, will last two weeks, and I will return to the court on the twentieth of November. For me, real relaxation is the absence of a plan for the day. I will spend time with loved ones and enjoy the moment. This is now very handy.

– How difficult does it seem to you now to maintain your current place in the rankings and climb higher, given the fact that recently in women’s tennis the top ten is significantly updated almost every year?

“Confirming something is always harder than doing it the first time. Therefore, it will be very difficult. Once I failed to cope with such a task (according to the results of 2018, Kasatkina took 10th place, and in 2019 she dropped to 69th.— “b”). Now I face the second challenge, which I perceive differently and for which I will set myself up differently. I just try to do my job and fulfill my main task – to improve. And if I fail to stay eighth, and I go down a little lower, no tragedy will happen. After all, this is a sport.