#DariaKasatkina might have been the 14th seed at the #MiamiOpen, but in reality, she comes into the tournament as the world number 22 after falling in the opening round of the BNP Paribas Open and as a result, failed to defend her finalist points which caused her to fall out of the top-20 for the first time since February 2018.
However, in an attempt to make a push up the rankings once again, the Russian started her Miami campaign in the best possible way, though quietly. In a match scheduled out on Court 9, Kasatkina went up against French Open junior champion and one of the most acclaimed juniors currently, #CoriGauff.
It was a huge test for Kasatkina considering Gauff plays some really aggressive tennis which the Russian typically struggles against. Unexpectedly, the 21-year-old raised her level and went toe-to-toe with the 15-year-old during the baseline rallies and outlasting the home favourite in the majority of them.
Gauff claimed her first career WTA win at the age of 15 against fellow wildcard and former doubles partner Catherine McNally in the first round, recovering from a set down to triumph in three sets.
Triumphing 6-3, 6-2 after just an hour and six minutes of action, Kasatkina earned just her second win on the tour in 2019 having amassed a shocking 1-6 win-loss record to start the new season with, despite being ranked inside the top-10 on the first day of the new year. She sets up a blockbuster clash with seven-time Major champion and former world number one Venus Williams in the third round and leads their head-to-head 2-1 hence the win for the Russian would not be too much of a surprise.
Kasatkina grabs the first set
It was a slow start from Kasatkina who could not deal with the pace of Gauff’s returns as the American went all out on the vulnerable second serves from the Russian, stealing the quick break in the opening game. The break spelt doom for Kasatkina, who came into the match being at a huge risk of being upset by the world number 456 considering her rotten form.
A series of unforced errors saw Gauff unable to maintain the consistency in the baseline rallies and immediately returned the favour to Kasatkina, who broke straight back to get onto the scoreboard. Dictating play with her big forehands, the highest-ranked Russian retrieved from a 0-30 deficit to hold serve and that proved to be crucial as it provided her with the confidence she needed.
After six games, that game turned out to be the only service hold as Gauff was unable to create an impact on her serves despite having the speed on it. Kasatkina was handling the pace well and mixing things up as she often included slices and added more spin on her shots to ruin her opponent’s rhythm.
The world number 22 successfully served out the opening frame 6-3, dominating points on her first serve and the return although she was struggling with her poor second serves which had always been a huge issue in her game.
Kasatkina claims the huge, confidence-boosting win
Kasatkina rode on her momentum as she broke serve in the opening game with Gauff sending yet another shot straight into the net. It seems like the American youngster could not find her rhythm, perhaps due to her inability to anticipate what would be coming from the opposite side of the net.
Gauff was getting increasingly frustrated with herself with the lack of winners but yet the abundance of unforced errors. The match was all but over when Kasatkina produced another excellent return game, forcing Gauff to make the errors and ultimately surging towards a commanding double-break advantage in the second set.
With the help of several strong returns, Gauff retrieved one of the breaks back and minimized the deficit although it proved to be the last game she would win in the afternoon as Kasatkina asserted her authority across the court, sealing the terrific 6-3, 6-2 win over the wildcard within just 66 minutes of action.
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