"I see why you are pissed" - Daria Kasatkina defends Iga Swiatek, takes a dig at Yevgeny Kafelnikov's career earnings after his criticism of Pole

Daria Kasatkina came to the defense of Iga Swiatek after former Russian tennis player Yevgeny Kafelnikov criticized the Pole for her complaints about the WTA tour schedule. Kasatkina cleverly took a dig at Kafelnikov's career earnings after he criticized Swiatek.

Iga Swiatek is currently competing at the 2024 Cincinnati Open and is the top seed in the tournament. She began her campaign in the second round after receiving a first-round bye . The World No.1 defeated qualifier Varvara Gracheva 6-0, 6-7(8), 6-2 in the opening round and then overcame 15th seed Marta Kostyuk 6-3, 6-2 in the third round.

Most recently, Swiatek defeated Mirra Andreeva 4-6, 6-3, 7-5 in two hours and 30 minutes to secure her place in the semifinals of the WTA 1000 hard court tournament in Cincinnati.

Following her win over Andreeva, Iga Swiatek talked about how the WTA Tour schedule has become very demanding and "exhausting." She stated that there are too many tournaments this season, making it tiresome for players to keep up with the rigorous schedule.

"So what can I say I've been kind of an advocate, saying that well, we shouldn't be pushing and pushing for us to play more. Obviously, it's not our decision, but for sure, I think we have too many tournaments in the season. It's not gonna end well as it's just it makes tennis less fun for us. Let's just say, I mean, obviously, I love playing all these places but it's pretty exhausting," Swiatek said.

The five-time Grand Slam champion expressed that players need more "rest" if they were to maintain their performance levels throughout the season

"I think most of the players could tell you that. Especially when you're playing at the high level and, you know, going to high ranking tournaments. I don't think it should be like that. We deserve to rest a little bit more obviously maybe. People are going to hate me for that because it sounded weird that I'm asking for rest. It doesn't make sense, but the truth is that you have got to keep up with the Tour," she added.

Iga Swiatek's aforementioned comments drew criticism from former World No.1 Yevgeny Kafelnikov. The Russian stated that she "complained too much and that no one is forcing her to participate in all the tournaments. He also suggested that Swiatek should be earning less than she currently does.

"Is someone pushing you to play ??? All you fricking do is complain!! I’ll tell you what you deserve ! You deserve to get paid a lot less than you do now!! How about that?? ✌ 😉 ," Kafelnikov wrote on X (formerly Twitter).

In response to Yevgeny Kafelnikov's remarks, Daria Kasatkina defended Swiatek by jokingly suggesting that Kafelnikov's criticism stemmed from the Pole's impressive career earnings, which were far superior to his own.

"Now I see why you are so pissed 😂 ," Kasatkina posted.

Screen grab of Daria Kasatkina's tweet

Iga Swiatek: “Our calendar is crazy, probably the toughest one in sports”

Iga Swiatek [Source: Getty]

Before beginning her campaign at the 2024 Cincinnati Open, Iga Swiatek had also talked about the demanding nature of the tennis calendar and stated that the schedule is "crazy."

Swiatek expressed that the tennis schedule is "toughest one" in sports and pointed out that unlike other athletes, tennis players do not have that luxury of having extended breaks.

“Our calendar is crazy, probably the toughest one in sports. There are sports that are really tough because, physically, you might get beat up. But most sports have four months off, sometimes even six. Our schedule is crazy, and it’s getting more crazy every year, which is scary. You just have to train wisely,” Iga Swiatek said.

Iga Swiatek will next face third seed Aryna Sabalenka in the semifinals of the 2024 Cincinnati Open.This match will be their 12th meeting on the WTA Tour, with the Pole emerging victorious in eight of their previous 11 encounters.