ROLAND GARROS

May 31, 2023

Daria Kasatkina

Press Conference

D. KASATKINA/M. Vondrousova

6-3, 6-4

THE MODERATOR: Daria, obviously you were incredibly successful here last year at Roland Garros. How has that impacted your performance so far obviously making it to the third round?

DARIA KASATKINA: Well, to be honest, the success of last year is not giving me any advantage. I would say maybe opposite because it's pressure any way I want it or I don't want it. It's still pressure, so I'm trying to deal with that.

For the moment I'm successful and just want to keep going that way.

THE MODERATOR: Questions in English, please.

Q. Just obviously a tough second round with Marketa, and that first set was forever. It took a long time. How were you able to pocket that first set, and how much of that helped you in the second?

DARIA KASATKINA: It was a disaster second round, to be honest. Yeah, I wasn't happy to see her name in the second round, but you never choose who to play.

I think we played here second round in 2017. I knew it was going to be tough. I realized it when we played, like, four games, and it was literally 30 minutes passed.

It was very physical. We were pretty tired already in the middle of the first set, and I think we showed pretty good level of tennis today, and I hope everyone enjoyed.

Yeah, it's always nice to win matches like that, and I'm happy with the level.

Q. Do you ever hit a tweener that clean in match?

DARIA KASATKINA: Yeah, I made one, a tweener winner, in Toronto 2017 against Roberta Vinci, so I've got two now. I can help Bianca now (laughing).

Q. What's the secret of a good tweener?

DARIA KASATKINA: Don't think that you are going to hit a tweener; just hit it. Every time when I'm thinking about it, it goes anywhere, and today I was just going for -- like, I was just running and not even thinking. I even forgot the moment when it happened, so I was actually surprised.

Yeah, I never expect to do it in the matches, to hit a tweener like that. So sometimes it's coming just from nowhere.

Q. My question is, you had that great run in California last summer at the Mubadala Silicon Valley Classic. Do you know whether the tournament is going to be held this year? Have you heard anything?

DARIA KASATKINA: Whether it's going to be host, I don't know. We don't know. We don't have a calendar.

Q. And no one has reached out to you for entry?

DARIA KASATKINA: No. Unfortunately, no. We're still waiting for the calendar for the second part of the season.

Q. Do you know why it's taking this long?

DARIA KASATKINA: No idea. Yeah, I also want to know why it's taking that long, but we don't have an answer.

Q. Sorry to go back to the tweener.

DARIA KASATKINA: That's okay. We can talk about it as much as you want.

Q. Bianca last night was saying that you're a very good teacher trying to help her through it.

DARIA KASATKINA: In what?

Q. On the tweener. Are you the one that's helping her with the tweener?

DARIA KASATKINA: Yeah, we had kind of a lesson with Naomi. I think she didn't try once after that. She doesn't need to, actually. She's pretty good on the baseline.

I mean, if Bianca wants, I can, of course, try to show her, but it's difficult. I was practicing this shot since I was 10 years old, so she's very short on time, to be honest (laughing).

Q. Next up you play a young American who has had a very good year so far, Peyton Stearns. Are you familiar with her at all? And just generally speaking, when you play a player that has a big game, like the Ostapenkos or Kvitovás, or that style of player, what is the key for you to get those wins?

DARIA KASATKINA: The key is to play every single point and don't get upset with the thousand winners from the opponent and hope for the best.

Yeah, I mean, it's very tough to play the players like that because if they have their day, it's very tough to compete with them. It seems like today the girl was playing very good. And, also, I must say if I don't play 100%, not much you can do, to be honest.

For sure it's very good win, and, yeah, I know she's making very good here. She has a good run, so it's going to be a tough match.

Plus, she's very pumped playing in a slam. I remember myself in the situation, so it's very dangerous. It's going to be a good match.

I'm already thinking it's just important to go and play tennis. It doesn't matter who is on the other side of the net. You just need to go and try to show your best so we regret after the match.

Q. Aryna could finish this tournament at No. 1, Sabalenka. I'm just curious from your experience of being on tour with her, playing against her, what she brings to that? Does it surprise you that she could be the World No. 1, just in terms of her game and what she can bring?

DARIA KASATKINA: I'm not surprised she can be No. 1 in the world because of the power she produce. It's crazy. She's one of the most powerful girls on tour.

Plus, she's moving very well. She's very fit, and she's always super hungry to win, and she's a hard worker. So altogether makes crazy chemistry.

To be honest, I'm not surprised. Especially after she won Australian Open, seems like some backpack fall off her shoulders, and you can see she's playing now fearless. So, yeah, makes a difference.