Anna Kalinskaya has enjoyed an impressive hard-court campaign thus far, starring across Washington, Montreal and now Cincinnati.
And despite her defeat to Iga Swiatek, the foundation she has laid for future success should prove encouraging ahead of the US Open, which commences later this month.
However, it has not been totally smooth sailing for the 26-year-old, who actually took aim at the Cincinnati Open for what she saw as ‘biased’ scheduling.
One pundit has argued that her anger should have been redirected.
Anna Kalinskaya complains about Cincinnati Open scheduling
Speaking on The Tennis Podcast, Matt Roberts was keen to offer his opinion on Kalinskaya’s recent complaint.
In fact, he even argued that the Russian’s argument was a moot point, with a greater issue looming over her initial frustration.
He claimed, first comparing it to Alejandro Davidovich Fokina’s scheduling qualm: “No, she’s got more of a point.
“I mean, look, she’s got a day off, so it’s a bit tough to be unhappy about the 11 am schedule when you’ve had a day off.
“I think what she should be complaining about is the fact that she was out there until 2:40 am. You know, that should be the complaint, you know, because that’s what’s thrown off her rhythm and her sleep schedule.
“So, yeah, she’s definitely got more of a point than Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, who had no point.
“No, I do feel for players when there are scheduling… they feel like they’re being screwed over by the scheduling. But it’s not the most egregious.”
This should not take away from the impressive nature of the Polish superstar’s win, with Swiatek nearing a Serena Williams and Viktoria Azarenka record at the Cincinnati Open.
What was Anna Kalinskaya’s complaint against the Cincinnati Open?
The gripe that Kalinskaya had with the Cincinnati Open related to when her match against Swiatek was scheduled, as she argued that the timing was unfair to her recovery.
This came after, as Roberts noted, her match finished midway through the night.
Despite having a full day off afterwards, she argued that it had completely knocked her out of her rhythm, and wrote on Instagram: “After my match against Alexandrova, I went home at 2:40 am and didn’t go to bed until 4:00 am. I slept a little and came back to train today. Then they scheduled my match tomorrow [against Swiatek] at 11:00 am.
“How does the WTA and the tournament expect me to recover and continue adjusting my sleep patterns, when that’s one of the most important aspects of recovery? It seems a bit biased.”
In the end, she was powerless to stop a superb Swiatek, who cruised past her with minimal fuss.
