Daria Kasatkina began her Australian Open campaign with a dominant win in the first round. After the victory, the World No. 9 penned a small message for her parents on the camera.
Kasatkina's parents are also from the sporting field. Her father Sergei Kasatkin was a professional ice hockey player for the Tolyatti Torpedo in the Russian leagues. Her mother Tatyana Kasatkina, meanwhile, was a national-level athlete who was seen as one of the best in the country.
However, as time went on, both parents switched their professions; while her father went towards engineering, her mother shifted to law.
On Tuesday, January 14, Kasatkina began her 2025 Australian Open campaign. She faced off against Viktoriya Tomova at the John Cain Arena. The Russian player started dominantly, winning the match 6-1,6-3 against her Belarusian opponent.
After securing victory, as is the tradition, the ninth seed moved towards the camera and signed it. While signing it, she sent her love and regards to her parents.
"Mom,dad love you," signed Kasatkina.
The next opponent for the Russian player is Wang Yafan of China. Kasatkina has a tough draw, with potential matches against eighth-seed Emma Navarro in the fourth round and then a potential match against the former World No.1 Iga Swiatek.
Daria Kasatkina has a poor record at the Australian Open
Of the four Majors in a year, the Australian Open has been the poorest for Daria Kasatkina in terms of results. She has never been past the third round in Melbourne. Before the 2025 season, she had a 7-9 record at the tournament. Last year, she was the 14th seed and lost to former Major champion Sloane Stephens 6-4,3-6,3-6 in the second round.
The Russian player, however, had a great year on the Tour in 2024. She reached six finals at the WTA 500 level, winning two titles. The Russian players have faltered at the big events. She has yet to reach a Major final and her one final appearance at a WTA 1000 event came at the 2018 BNP Paribas Open, where she lost 2-6.3-6 against Naomi Osaka.
As for Majors, the Russian has found most of her success at the French Open. She had an incredible run at Roland Garros in 2022, winning against the likes of Rebecca Sramkova, Fernanda Contreras Gomez, Shelby Rogers, Camila Giorgi, and Veronika Kudermetova to reach the last four. She lost 2-6,1-6 against eventual champion Iga Swiatek.