Aryna Sabalenka has declared she's ready to take the fight to her "amazing" Australian rival Daria Kasatkina, determined to avoid the same fate of a sensational French Open exit that befell her fellow world No.1.
But the colourful Kasatkina is in the mood to "battle for every ball" to pull off her third career victory over a top-ranked player, sounding as if she's enjoying taking her opponents to testing places in what she likens to the 'tennis jungle'.
Sabalenka, a big Jannik Sinner fan, reckons it was "really painful to see" the men's No.1 capitulate in the brutal heat to Juan Manuel Cerundolo on Thursday. "I felt so bad for him," she sighed.
