“Kalinskaya sets up her opponents well and doesn’t let them take the initiative” – former third racket of the world

Olympic bronze medalist Nadezhda Petrova believes that tennis player Anna Kalinskaya does not allow her opponents to seize the game initiative in matches at the Australian Open.

On Monday, Kalinskaya defeated Italian Jasmine Paolini (26th seed) in the fourth round of the tournament with a score of 6:4, 6:2. In the quarterfinals, the Russian will play against the Chinese Zheng Qingwen (12).

“It’s great that we have new names and our athletes go so far at the Grand Slam tournament. I congratulate her on this result. I will note, however, that initially her draw went so well that it was only in the fourth round that she met the seeded tennis player from Italy, and then only the 26th.

I really liked how Kalinskaya played these matches and how she held her own; she had a fight with the experienced American Sloane Stephens. I like Anna’s acting. She is light, fast, nimble, and approaches the ball well with her feet. She has sharp, cannon-like strikes, she sets up her opponents very well and doesn’t let them take the initiative, she plays number one. Next, she will play with more experienced tennis players, so it is important for her to gather herself and not think about who is standing in front of her,” Gazeta.Ru quotes Petrova as saying.