Paula Badosa lived this Tuesday in the Open the Australiathe moment he had been waiting for since the beginning of his careerwhen I dreamed of winning in big stadiums and being a top player. The 27-year-old Spaniard and number 12 in the world finally broke down the wall of the quarterfinals in Grand Slamswhich he had not been able to overcome at Roland Garros 2021 or at the US Open 2024. He did it in the Rod Laver Arena, practically full, and against a brilliant rival, Coco Gauff, third in the rankingchampion in New York and finalist in Paris, who was on a 13-match winning streak since last year's WTA Finals, where she also triumphed: 7-5 and 6-4 in 1h43. “Third time's the charm”he wrote in one of the cameras of the television production. On Thursday she will fight Aryna Sabalenka or Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova for a place in the final.
“I'm excited. I am a somewhat emotional person. Overcoming something like this is very hard. Today I wanted to play my best tennis and I think I did it. Coco was playing crazy at first. So I am super proud of the level I gave today”said Badosa, who is the fifth Navy player to reach the semifinals of a Slam, after Lili Álvarez, Arantxa Sánchez Vicario, Conchita Martínez and Garbiñe Muguruzawhich was the last one to achieve it, precisely in Melbourne, five years ago, when it was a finalist. “I've been through a lot. In the past I beat the best in the world, but I think now I am a better player, more mature and I control my emotions a little better, not always, but sometimes. “This is a dream come true”celebrated Paula, who had not beaten a top-10 player in this category of tournaments until now (1-3). Now she is back in the top ten, this is assured with this victory (she is provisionally 9th).
Unlike in the other major quarterfinals she had played before, Badosa started the match seemingly calm, hitting the ball with confidence. Although the first serves did not come in regularly, he executed the second serves very well, which allowed him not to have to face a single break point against him in the entire first set. She did put more pressure on Gauff's serve. In the third game he had a 15-40 that he could not take advantage of and continued to compete well, with the same calm, until a new opportunity arrived, which he grabbed this time with a succession of great points: one finished with a cushioned volley into the net and another with a devastating forehand winner. Then he closed the partial with aplomb. Excellent.
Determination
In full positive momentum, Badosa had five more break options at the opening of the second set. Her rival tried to save the furniture at pace, as she usually plays, but Begur's player did not let her shoot almost backhanded and she knew how to benefit from the lack of effectiveness of the American's flat forehand hits. A couple of double faults helped him reach the goal. It was crucial that he not let him return to the game, because Coco doesn't usually give up and is physically powerful. In their last two matches (Rome and Beijing 2024), they came back after losing the first set.
-So from there to the end, Paula still had a world left to succeed, especially in her head. I had never been so close to the top-4 in a Slam. And Gauff broke her the first chance she had, and with some luck, in the Catalan's first bad game. Luckily for her, she immediately recovered from the blow and went from 40-15 to having an advantage and not forgiving. Back ahead, Badosa gripped the racket with determination. His opponent also gave him a game with another double fault. And although he suffered another break on the way to glory, He did not miss the great opportunity that he had carved out for himself with class and intelligence and put the finishing touch with a right cross. The most important blow of his life.
Follow the Diario AS channel on WhatsApp, where you will find all the sport in a single space: the news of the day, the agenda with the latest news on the most important sporting events, the most outstanding images, the opinion of the best AS firms , reports, videos, and some humor from time to time.
