Kremlin Cup, Moscow

[CR14] Carla Suarez Navarro (ESP) vs. [CR104] Daria Kasatkina (RUS)

Suarez Navarro’s woes continue as she loses rather easily to the Russian teenager, Kasatkina, 1-6, 2-6. Suarez Navarro has had an injury plagued latter half of the season and after a rather promising start to the season, she has had some rather shocking losses. I thought she had recovered her form when she defeated Dominika Cibulkova, a player she had never beaten previously. However, her erratic performance today seriously makes you question the state of her recovery.  She does not usually quit on her matches; yet, it appeared that’s just what she did today.  She barely kept the ball in play and she was not moving well.  Is she injured again?

Does this put an end to her hopes of getting a spot in the WTA Finals in Singapore? This was my first time seeing Kasatkina play and she handled herself very well against the veteran, Suarez Navarro.  She was the more composed player and appeared quite at ease on centre court. In less than an hour she crushed Suarez Navarro, never really allowing her to get comfortable in the match.  She played intelligent tennis and handled just about everything Suarez Navarro tried to disrupt her rhythm. I thought she would stumble when she served for the match as the pressure mounted; however, except for a minor mental cramp when she attempted an ill-advised drop shot, she stayed calm.  She radiated confidence, a belief in her games missing from the façade of her opponent.  This gives the young Russian her first career WTA semifinal.  Will Kasatkina make her first career WTA Final or will she be stopped by a fellow Russian?