"Where we had our first date" - Stefanos Tsitsipas welcomes playing mixed doubles with girlfriend Paula Badosa at French Open after making up

Stefanos Tsitsipas looks forward to pairing up with his girlfriend Paula Badosa for a mixed-doubles campaign at the 2024 French Open. The two are scheduled to take on the duo of Ena Shibahara and Nathaniel Lammons in the first round on Thursday, May 30.

Tsitsipas and Badosa have already completed one year of relationship as the two started dating before the French Open last year. Earlier in May this year, they had taken a break from each other but patched up only a few days later.

The couple is now gearing up for their professional debut as partners on tour beginning with Roland Garros. Ahead of his endeavor with Badosa, Tsitsipas suggested in a recent interview that they decided to take a shot at the title in Paris without a second thought.

"Paris holds a special place for me and Paula, that’s where we had our first date right before Roland-Garros last year, our anniversary occurs here, so for us it was a no-brainer to play our first mixed doubles in Roland-Garros," the Greek told France Télévisions.

Notably, Stefanos Tsitsipas is competing in every category at the Claycourt Major this year. He has already advanced to the third round in the men's singles draw with wins over Martin Fucsovics and Daniel Altmaeir in the first and second, respectively.

The ATP No. 9 will kickstart his doubles journey alongside his brother Petros Tsitsipas against John-Patrick Smith and Denys Molchanov on Thursday, May 30.

Paula Badosa also opened her 2024 French Open effort with a comeback victory over 26th seed Katie Boulter from Great Britain. She defeated Boulter 4-6, 7-5, 6-4 in the first round to set up a meeting with Yulia Putintseva in the second round on Thursday.

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Stefanos Tsitsipas and Paula Badosa missed out on competing at Wimbledon mixed doubles in 2023

Paula Badosa and Stefanos Tsitsipas at Tie Break Tens. GETTY

Stefanos Tsitsipas and Paula Badosa missed out on making their debut on the mixed doubles tour at the Wimbledon Championships. The two had drawn an all-American pair of Jessica Pegula and Austin Krajicek in the first round.

However, Badosa pulled out of the London Major due to a back injury that she sustained at the 2023 Italian Open. She earned a victory over Alison Riske-Amritraj in the opening round but quit midway against Marta Kostyuk in the second.

Notably, Stefanos Tsitsipas and Paula Badosa have played mixed doubles on a couple of occasions. They took the court together while representing Team Kites at the World Tennis League in December 2023 and ended as second-best pair to Emma Navarro and Ben Shelton at the Eisenhower Cup at Indian Wells this year.