Daria Kasatkina bows out at French Open with defeat to familiar foe Mirra Andreeva
Daria Kasatkina's first grand slam as an Australian is over, ended at the French Open by her teenage phenomenon friend Mirra Andreeva.
Two months since being granted permanent residency, Kasatkina's hopes of becoming the first Australian woman to reach the quarter-finals since Ash Barty's triumphant year of 2019 finally unravelled 6-3 7-5 at the hands of the exceptional Russian-born 18-year-old.
The only other time the pair had played, in the final of last October's Ningbo Open in China, Andreeva had ended in tears and needed to be comforted by Kasatkina after blowing a 3-0 lead in the final set.
On Monday, though, the French-based teen who has rocketed to No 6 in the world didn't let Kasatkina, 10 years her senior, off the hook on Court Suzanne Lenglen despite another nervy blip.
Kasatkina even earned a set point to level the match after rallying in gritty fashion but Andreeva showed steely resolve to the win a compelling 94-minute duel.
Defeat for Kasatkina meant the end of the green-and-gold singles challenge, but she could pride herself on having been the last Australian standing among the 16 starters in the draw.
The youngest player to reach back-to-back women's singles quarter-finals at Roland Garros since Martina Hingis!Catch up on the highlights from Mirra Andreeva's straight-sets victory over Kasatkina 👇#RolandGarros pic.twitter.com/NZK5Qpg75S
'It was a hell of a match,' Andreeva said after the friends hugged at the net. 'I'm super happy I stayed calm in the second set when she raised her level. Honestly, I'm so happy I won. I hate playing against her, we practise a lot and even that is a torture.
'My coach [Conchita Martinez] says you've got to practise with the people you don't like. That's why I practise with her because I hate her!' she added with a big smile.
A tactical affair between two mates with terrific all-court games – Andreeva comes over like a younger, more power-laden version of Kasatkina – broke out on Roland Garros's second biggest arena as the Australian comfortably held her own at the start.
Kasatkina even looked set to strike first in the seventh game, carving out two break points as Andreeva grew impatient.
But the youngster is as tough as she is gifted. She held serve then induced five errors from Kasatkina in the next game to annex the key break.
Under increasing pressure from the depth and accuracy of the teen's laser groundstrokes, Kasatkina scooped a backhand long to gift the first set in 40 minutes.
Her problems were immediately compounded when Andreeva pulled off a lovely move at the start of the second set, a neat drop shot followed by a lofted winning pass that sealed an immediate break.
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Kasatkina had promised she was ready to 'die on court' and she looked absolutely spent after prevailing in one remarkable 26-shot rally.
And that utter determination started to gnaw away at Andreeva as the Australian reeled off four games in a row from 3-1 down to serve for the set.
But Andreeva immediately counter-attacked to break back, then battled to hold after Kasatkina earned a set point on the youngster's delivery at 5-4, only to be deprived by a powerful forehand.
Once back level, Andreeva began to dictate. One piece of amazing defensive retrieving also induced a dismal Kasatkina smash into the net, and enabled her to break to love.
She then sealed the deal on her second match point with Kasatkina hitting a forehand long.
Andreeva has now reached the quarters without dropping a set and she's the youngest to achieve back-to-back last-eight appearances since Martina Hingis 27 years ago.
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Friends said the pair fell out, with Ms Johnson making Bromley redundant from her role at Smileys Support Coordination last year. On the unrelated weapons charges, Wood is due to appear in Bundaberg Magistrates Court on June 13, while Bromley is due to appear on June 23. Pheobe's grief-stricken mother admitted the 'worst case-scenario could have happened' in a harrowing video released by Queensland Police. She begged the public to share any information about her disappearance with police as Kylie Johnson's voice wavered in front of the camera. 'This investigation will not be over for me until we find Pheobe,' she said. 'The search for Pheobe goes on. I still hold hope that Pheobe will come home but I have to consider the possibility that she also won't. 'If the worst-case scenario has happened, I at least need to know where she's resting. I need to know where Pheobe is. 'My daughter wouldn't just disappear. Someone knows something. 'As a mum, I'm asking you to come forward with your information. 'Please speak to police if you have any information, big or small. You can report information to police anonymously, via PoliceLink or CrimeStoppers.' Sunday June 1 Pheobe's mum posted statement online furiously hitting back after her public plea for help to find her daughter was ripped apart by trolls. 'People wanted a statement, they got one yet still question me as a mother,' her post read. 'I'm sorry that I'm currently an emotional wreck, trying to protect our other children from the media and the trolls, trying to continue to breathe while your world shatters around you! 'If anyone would like to be in this position please step in and show me how to do this. 'Show me what a perfect parent looks like? Show me how to navigate this? Show me how to deal with the unknown and the uncertainty? 'Show me how to use perfect language and emotion in a situation that NO parent ever wants to be in?' The search for Pheobe goes on.
