Anna Kalinskaya returns to Washington, where she reached the final last year. Daria Kasatkina has made it into the main draw through qualifying, but she has spent an enormous amount of energy and again struggled badly on serve. Thanks to her freshness and aggressive returning, she has an excellent chance of beating an opponent whose style suits her.
Daria Kasatkina
Kasatkina, who represents Australia, came through qualifying to reach the main draw, twice coming back from 0:1 down. She defeated Bolkvadze (6:7, 6:4, 6:0) and Smith (4:6, 6:4, 6:0). The Australian builds her game on long baseline rallies, varying the tempo and sending deep, heavily spun shots. However, she does not have a powerful first serve, and in long games she regularly faces break points. In qualifying she was once again let down by double faults – 27 in two matches.
Anna Kalinskaya
Kalinskaya is having a solid season (20 wins and 14 defeats) and has established herself in the top 30 of the rankings. The Washington hard courts are among her favourite conditions. In addition to last year's final in 2025, she also reached the semi-finals here in 2019. Her statistics on outdoor hard courts this season are modest – 9 wins in 16 matches – but only in Miami did she fail to get past the first round. She plays aggressive, fast tennis: her crisp, flat forehand allows her to hit accurately along the lines and immediately punish opponents for short replies. She reads the bounce on these courts very well and is highly motivated to defend last year's ranking points.
Daria Kasatkina vs Anna Kalinskaya Prediction
In the head-to-head, Kasatkina leads 4:1, but in recent seasons the balance of power has clearly shifted. Daria has spent too many resources in qualifying, playing two long three-set matches. Those 27 double faults are likely to be easy pickings for Kalinskaya, who returns the second serve excellently and immediately seizes the initiative. She should come onto court fresh, impose a high tempo from the opening games and take advantage of her opponent's fatigue.
