"The only thing I've helped her with is appearing in my vlogs," Kasatkina jokes about Andreeva

Daria Kasatkina and Mirra Andreeva will face each other in the Round of 16 at Roland-Garros. The neo-Australian dominated Paula Badosa after a very solid match (6-1, 7-5), while the young 18-year-old Russian player got the better of Yulia Putintseva (6-3, 6-1).

The two women faced off in the final in Ningbo last October, and Kasatkina triumphed (6-0, 4-6, 6-4). During the trophy ceremony, Andreeva, in tears, was consoled on the podium by her opponent.

In a press conference after her victory against the Spaniard, the 28-year-old 17th world player looked ahead to their upcoming confrontation on Monday on Parisian clay and took the opportunity to talk about her affection for her young opponent.

"I hate Mirra! I'm joking, of course. The only thing I've helped her with is appearing in my vlogs. She's a very nice person and an incredible player.

I can say we are friends. She is very young but so talented. She is going to accomplish great things. We have trained together so many times. We'll see.

In Ningbo, there was drama. This will be our first clay court showdown. I'm looking forward to it; it will be fun," Kasatkina declared in recent hours to The Tennis Letter.