US Open 2021: Elina Svitolina vs Daria Kasatkina preview, head-to-head & prediction
Match details
Fixture: (5) Elina Svitolina vs (25) Daria Kasatkina
Date: 3 September 2021
Tournament: US Open 2021
Round: Third round (Round of 32)
Venue: New York, United States
Category: Grand Slam
Surface: Outdoor hardcourt
Prize money: $40,560,000
Live telecast: USA - Tennis Channel & ESPN | UK - Amazon Prime Video | India - Star Sports / Disney+ Hotstar VIP
Elina Svitolina vs Daria Kasatkina preview
Fifth seed Elina Svitolina will face familiar foe Daria Kasatkina in the third round of the 2021 US Open on Friday.
Svitolina is into the third round of the US Open for the sixth time in her career. She beat qualifier Rebecca Marino in the first round before dismissing Rebeka Masarova in the second round on Wednesday.
The Ukrainian is yet to drop a set in New York so far. She was close to her best against Masarova, particularly on serve; Svitolina didn't face a single break point in the match. The Olympic bronze medalist won 91% of her first-serve points and broke her opponent three times.
More impressively though, Svitolina was miserly as ever with regards to unforced errors. She committed only 11 against Masarova which was, in fact, five more than her tally against Marino.
With her win over Masarova, Svitolina also improved her winning streak to seven matches, dating back to her first-round win over Clara Burel in the Chicago Women's Open.
Daria Kasatkina, meanwhile, enters this fixture on the back of an impressive second-round victory over Olympic silver medalist Marketa Vondrousova. Kasatkina beat the Czech 3-6, 6-4, 6-4 to register her 17th three-set win of the season - the highest tally on the WTA tour.
The match between Vondrousova and Kasatkina was quite a close affair, and the Russian finished with only four more points than her opponent. Both players broke each other five times, but Vondrousova's higher unforced-error count proved to be decisive.
Elina Svitolina vs Daria Kasatkina head-to-head
Elina Svitolina leads Daria Kasatkina by a margin of 5-0 in the head-to-head. But it is pertinent to note they haven't played each since 2019, and since then Kasatkina has returned to her best.
Elina Svitolina vs Daria Kasatkina prediction
Daria Kasatkina has earned a whopping 11 breaks of serve at the US Open so far, using her smart and aggressive returns to good effect. Elina Svitolina, on the other hand, has served exceptionally well; the Ukrainian has been broken just once in both of her matches combined.
Svitolina's serve could well be the key to the match on Friday. If Kasatkina is unable to make enough inroads on it, she will struggle to stay afloat.
That said, this is a much-improved version of Kasatkina. The Russian has been quite difficult to hit through all year, and Svitolina is not the kind of big hitter who can take the racket out of the opponent's hands.
The courts are pretty quick at this year's US Open, and that could help both players get a little more pace on their groundstrokes. But the Ukrainian has been more willing to take the initiative and play first-strike tennis this tournament, which could tilt the scales in her favor.
Prediction: Elina Svitolina to win in three sets.