French Open 2022, quarter-finals, Wednesday, 01.06.2022
It won’t be long before the final at the French Open 2022. On Saturday it’s the women’s turn, there are quite a few you can see in the final. On Wednesday, there will first be another quarter-final to watch.
The number 20 meets the number 29, so it’s a duel between two players who are at home in the extended world elite, but not at the top. In my Kudermetova Kasatkina tip, I reveal why my bias is towards the one who is in a GS quarter-final for the 3rd time.
Both are from Russia, are 25 years old, are only separated by two weeks. Both are ranked in the top 30 in the world, have never been in a semi-final at a Grand Slam tournament.
Veronika Kudermetova and Daria Kasatkina can celebrate the biggest success of their careers on the big stage. For Kudermetova, the current performance is already a success, never before had she reached the round of the best eight.
Her French Open was an up-and-down affair, starting with a hard-fought 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 win over Zhu Lin. Against Aleksandra Krunic in the 2nd round, on the other hand, she was able to save some important energy with a 6-3, 6-3.
Only a few expected a win against Paula Badosa. The strong Spaniard started the match in bad shape and gave up at 3-6, 1-2. After Kudermetova did not have to push her limits here either, she faced Madison Keys.
The first set was clearly lost 1-6, but the Russian then caught up and still won 1-6, 6-3, 6-1. Her results are a colourful mix, now it comes to only the second direct duel with Daria Kasatkina.
A year ago in St. Petersburg, Kasatkina won a somewhat strange match 1-6, 6-1, 6-2. In 2018, she had the best phase of her career, emerging in the top 10 and reaching the quarterfinals in Paris and Wimbledon.
Should she now advance one round, it would be an absolute first for Kasatkina as well. It would not be undeserved, as the 25-year-old’s tournament performance so far hardly shows any weaknesses.
She set the tone impeccably with a fixed 6-2, 6-0 win over Rebecca Sramkova, and the 6-0, 6-3 win over Fernanda Gomez that followed was also top-notch. Shelby Rogers tried to stop Kasatkina, but was equally without a chance at 3-6, 2-6.
At the latest when she defeated Camila Giorgi 6-2, 6-2, the experts realised: Here is a real contender for the final! 14 games in four matches were surrendered – what an excellent score!
Kasatkina allowed two breaks, but she herself converted far more than 60 percent of her chances. The fact that more than 70 per cent of her first serves were successful also speaks for her.
My Kudermetova Kasatkina Tip
Both Daria Kasatkina and Veronika Kudermetova can reach for the biggest success of their careers on Wednesday. A semi-final in a Grand Slam has never happened before.
She didn’t drop a single set, her opponents didn’t even get a chance to break. Kudermetova had to fight a lot more, even benefiting from a break once. Therefore my tip is:
Kasatkina beats Kudermetova!
