Daria Kasatkina thanks Matteo Berrettini for practice session ahead of clay swing

Daria Kasatkina thanked Matteo Berrettini for a claycourt practice session she had with him ahead of the 2023 Charleston Open, where she has now reached the second round.

Kasatkina, who cruised through her first-round encounter against Madison Brengle 6-2, 6-1, described Berrettini as a "big forehand guy" before joking that he could go on to become a successful coach and sparring partner.

She champion thanked her coach for organizing the session while also being grateful to Berrettini, adding that not many male players choose to practice with the girls.

"Big forehand guy. Thanks to my coach Flavio (Cipolia) who organized this practise. It was great. Thanks to Matteo. You know not many guys practice with the girls. It feels great that I could handle (the session). Maybe not the rallies if he was playing full power with the serve but some exercises we were doing were great," the 2017 Charleston Open told the Tennis Channel.

Kasatkina disclosed that she attempted to direct returns to his backhand and also requested him to aim his big first serves to the sides and not directly at her body.

"It was fun, I was trying to hit everything to his backhand, it was great practise. We asked him to serve a few first serves, not to the body, to the side, so he was not killing me," the 25-year-old explained.

"Matteo, after you finish maybe you can be a great coach or a sparring partner," she joked, when reminded about how well she returned in her first-round match against Brengle.

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"My focus now shifts to the clay court season" - Matteo Berrettini after disappointing start to 2023 season

Matteo Berrettini has had a disappointing season thus far

Matteo Berrettini has played some of his best tennis on the grass courts of Queens Club and Wimbledon but is eagerly looking forward to the clay swing this year after a disappointing start to the season.

After losing to Andy Murray 6-3, 6-3, 4-6, 6-7 (7-9), 7-6 (10-6) in a marathon first round clash at the Australian Open, the 26-year-old also failed to progress beyond the opening round at Indian Wells and Miami.

Berrettini took to social media to assert that his focus was now on the claycourt season and that he has made a lot of progress on the practice courts despite a string of disappointing results.

"Not the results I hoped for in Indian Wells, Phoenix, and Miami. But a lot of progress has been made on the practice court. My focus now shifts to the clay court season. Looking forward to a strong training block before my first event in Monte-Carlo. Thank you for the continued support," the 2021 Wimbledon runner-up captioned a post on Instagram.

After missing out on the clay swing last year following right wrist surgery, Berrettini will be hoping for better luck when he takes part in the Monte-Carlo Open.