Paula Badosa: "After a lot of work, suffering, tears; Very happy to have the opportunity to be competing again"

Paula Badosa expressed her joy after returning to court at Wimbledon following an injury scare that led her to withdraw from the 2023 French Open.

Badosa made her return to the tour after her quarterfinal exit at the Italian Open. She advanced to the second round of Wimbledon by defeating America's Alison Riske-Amritraj 6-3, 6-3.

In her next match, she will face Marta Kostyuk, who eliminated eighth seed Maria Sakkari with a remarkable comeback victory of 0-6, 7-5, 6-2.

Badosa began the 2023 season on a high, reaching the semifinals of the Adelaide International 2. However, she was compelled to withdraw from the tournament due to an injury, which also prevented her from participating in the Australian Open.

The Spaniard then regained her momentum during the clay season, delivering consistent performances in the lead-up to the highly anticipated French Open. Badosa, however, was once again thwarted by an injury, forcing her to miss the prestigious clay-court Major.

Nevertheless, after a period of recovery and rehabilitation, the former World No. 2 made a triumphant return to the tennis court at Wimbledon.

After her victory against Alison Riske-Amritraj, Paula Badosa took to social media to express her immense joy and gratitude for the chance to compete once more. She revealed that her journey had been filled with arduous work, countless struggles, and tears, making the win all the more meaningful.

"After a lot of work, suffering, tears... Very very happy to have the opportunity to be competing again. 💚 💪 ," Badosa tweeted.

During the post-match press conference, the Spaniard stated that she didn't have much time to prepare for Wimbledon and mentioned that she had only started playing tennis a week before the tournament.

Badosa stated that she dedicated numerous hours each day to her recovery in order to compete at the grasscourt Major.

"I didn't have much preparation. I started to play tennis one week ago. I was doing recovery. A lot of hours every day to get here, because at the beginning, it was like it seemed almost impossible to play here in Wimbledon," Paula Badosa said.

---

Stefanos Tsitsipas and Paula Badosa to play mixed doubles together at Wimbledon

Paula Badosa (L) and Stefanos Tsitsipas (R)

Stefanos Tsitsipas and Paula Badosa have partnered up to compete as a team in the mixed doubles tournament at the 2023 Wimbledon Championships.

Tsitsipas and Badosa have teamed up for the mixed doubles event at the grasscourt Major. In their opening round, they will face off against top seeds, Jessica Pegula and Austin Krajicek.

If the Greek and Paula Badosa emerge victorious in their opening match, they will face either Andrea Vavassori and Liudmila Samsonova or Rafael Matos and Louisa Stefani in the subsequent round.

Stefanos Tsitsipas will also compete in the men's doubles event at Wimbledon alongside his brother, Petros, as his partner. In the opening round, the duo will face the French pair of Arthur Fils and Luca van Assche.