Rafael Nadal was mimicked by Daria Kasatkina at the French Open (Image: GETTY)

Rafael Nadal was mimicked by French Open star Daria Kasatkina after the 28-year-old reached the fourth round of the Grand Slam. Kasatkina is set to take on Mirra Andreeva in the last-16 after getting the better of Paula Badosa in Paris.

Kasatkina has been in fine form on the French clay and opened her campaign with a three-set victory over Katerina Siniakova. The Russian-born Australian then eased past Leolia Jeanjean in straight sets before humbling Badosa 6-1, 7-5. But she will face a tough task in her quest against Andreeva after her 18-year-old practice partner reached the semi-finals last year.

Kasatkina spoke to the Tennis Channel after her third-round victory. And discussing Andreeva, she explained: “Every tournament, she’s improving. Everyone can see that. She likes to play here, she played in the semi-finals last year, right.

“So it’s going to be tough, of course, I mean because she is an unbelievable mover on court. And here on clay it’s more difficult to make the person miss. But I will try to do that, I will try to my best.”

The talented star then put on a Spanish accent to perform an impression of Nadal as she exclaimed: “Like Rafa, I will try to do my best, no.” She followed her impersonation with a burst of laughter.

Daria Kasatkina will face practice partner Mirra Andreeva in the last-16 of the French Open (Image: GETTY)

Stay up-to-date with the latest Tennis news Join us on WhatsApp

Our community members are treated to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. You can check out at any time. Read our Privacy Policy

Kasatkina, who reached the French Open semi-finals in 2022 but suffered a second-round exit last year, will be the underdog against Andreeva.

And she explained: “We’ve played just once but we’ve practised a lot. Like almost every tournament we are practising. I’m wondering if she has the phone number of another player. No, I’m kidding.”

She added: “Our match is coming in two days so I’m still enjoying my win today because it was very important to me. I’m going to speak to the coach about the next one but honestly I’m really happy to face Mirra in the fourth round at Roland Garros. I love to share the court with good people.”

Kasatkina grew up as a huge Nadal fan and previously admitted she was “really happy for Rafa” after he defeated Novak Djokovic on his way to winning his final Grand Slam trophy at the French Open in 2022.

But she also claimed last year that Djokovic was the greatest player of all time ahead of Nadal and Roger Federer because he had won the most Grand Slam trophies.

“All three of them are unreachable,” she insisted. “You know if someone has an idol, they’ll love him even if the results are not up to par. And it’s obvious in my case, because it started in my childhood. “But objectively, looking at the results, Novak is the greatest. It’d be silly to argue about that. And the rest is a matter of taste.”