When Daria Kasatkina spoke about accepting different personalities, it was evident that she had a problem with labels in sports generally.
The comparison of Rafael Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz is not one that Russian tennis star Daria Kasatkina is fond of. She even called such parallels incorrect. The WTA star criticized the tagging in sports generally and believes it is unfair for Alcaraz to be compared to a player from a previous generation.
It makes sense that Alcaraz rose through the ranks fast, so similarities abound. While some believe Alcaraz possesses characteristics of the Big Three, others compare the aggression and spirit of battle of the Spaniard to that of his senior. Despite their similarities, Kasatkina believes that parallels shouldn’t be made.
I’ve never really liked it when they put labels on young players. Labels from older players, it’s just wrong. We always had it like ‘the second Maria Sharapova’ or ‘the next Nadal’, also in football ‘the next Messi or Ronaldo’. It just feels so wrong. I mean, why? Different people, different levels. First of all, time doesn’t stand still. Why would you compare new generations to the previous one?
Aside from being Spanish and aggressive on the court, Carlos Alcaraz and Rafael Nadal don’t really have many things in common, the Russian WTA ace asserted. She pointed out two key distinctions between the two players: Nadal is a lefty and Alcaraz is a righty in terms of playing style. Ultimately, she praised Alcaraz for his theatrical prowess.
Everybody is unique and different, even on the court. Rafa and Alcaraz have a different vibe from each other. What they have in common is they’re both Spanish. Wow really? And their ‘vamos’ and being emotional too. But I think it has to do more with their personalities.
Among many, Novak Djokovic was the first to point out a similarity between Nadal and Alcaraz, praising the young player for having the same resilience in difficult circumstances as the 22-time Grand Slam champion.
Daria Kasatkina selects her men’s tennis greatest ever.
In addition to discussing her opinions on the often made Rafael Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz comparison, Daria Kasatkina selected her men’s tennis GOAT (Greatest of All Time), which is an eternal question. By declaring that Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Novak Djokovic were unbeatable, Kasatkina chose the safer path.
Kasatkina did, however, quietly share her opinion when she identified the player with the most Grand Slam victories.
All three of them are unreachable. You know if someone has an idol, they’ll love him even if the results are not up to par. And it’s obvious in my case, because it started in my childhood, but objectively, looking at the results, Novak is the greatest. It’d be silly to argue about that. And the rest is a matter of taste.
Similar to her greatest-ever, Kasatkina is not enjoying her season. With several first-round losses and just one championship (WTA 250) in the 2024 season, she has lost popularity. In the Asian leg of the tour, Kasatkina will be hoping to turn things around.