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Daria Kastkinas' apparent taunt directed at Alexander Zverev following his defeat in the semifinals of the 2024 Australian Open has delighted tennis fans.
Despite winning the first two sets of the match, Zverev's hopes of reaching a Grand Slam final for the second time were shattered when he suffered a 5-7, 3-6, 7-6(4), 7-6(5), 6-3, defeat at the hands of Daniil Medvedev in the semifinals of the Melbourne Major.
Medvedev's victory not only propelled him to his third Australian Open final, but also extended his head-to-head lead against Zverev to 12-7. Following the Russian's win, his compatriot, Daria Kasatkina took to social media and appeared to taunt Alexander Zverev for his loss in the semifinals:
"I feel like everyone is thinking the same right now," Kastkina posted on X (formerly Twitter).
Fans were amused by Kasatkina's apparent jab at Zverev and took to social media to express their delight.
One fan stated that Kasatkina never misses a chance to speak out against Zverev, referring to a previous incident where she educated a fan for supporting the German despite domestic abuse allegations.
The Russian had also expressed her disapproval of Daniil Medvedev being portrayed as a "villain" in Alexander Zverev's episode on Netflix's Break Point.
"I appreciate how dedicated she is to sh*tting on Zverev," a fan posted on Reddit.
Another fan expressed their admiration for Kasatkina, commending her for speaking out against Zverev, a stance that seemingly no one else is taking.
"WE LOVE YOU FOR THIS DASHA! Thank you for speaking up when nobody else will," a fan posted on X.
Here are a few more reactions from tennis fans:
Alexander Zverev on his Australian Open SF loss: "It's obviously extremely disappointing"
During the post match press conference following his loss to Daniil Medvedev, Alexander Zverev stated that the defeat was extremely disappointing.
The World No. 6 emphasized that this loss was particularly disheartening as he had been performing exceptionally well throughout his entire Australian trip, including the United Cup 2024 and the Melbourne Major.
"I mean, just basically the whole Australian trip I was playing quite well. Been playing well actually for a few months now, so it's obviously extremely disappointing. Yeah, nothing much I can say," Zverev said.
The former World No. 2 expressed his frustration over the loss, attributing it to his physical ailment rather than his performance on the tennis court.
"Yeah, frustrating. But for me it's more frustrating that I didn't feel 100% physically. That was more frustrating to me. It kind of took the chance away. You know, kind of I lost it because of a physical state, not because of tennis. That is, for me, disappointing..." Zverev added.
