Aryna Sabalenka sings high praise for “fighter” Paula Badosa for getting back to top level despite series of injuries

Aryna Sabalenka says she is proud of her friend Paula Badosa for fighting back from injury troubles to play at her best once again.

Aryna Sabalenka sings high praise for “fighter” Paula Badosa for getting back to top level despite series of injuries

Paula Badosa with Citi Open title (L), Aryna Sabalenka (Images via Imago)

Belarusian tennis ace Aryna Sabalenka is more than just happy to see Paula Badosa play at her best level once again. After the Spaniard reached the third round on the back of two dominating wins at the 2024 US Open, Sabalenka was all praise of her best friend. She lauded Badosa and said that the former World No. 2 is a fighter.

Badosa, upon her comeback after a series of injuries, clinched her first title in over two years when she defeated World No. 43 Marie Bouzkova in the Citi Open final. Immediately after winning the title, she fell to the ground and probably had flashes of her injury struggles recently. Now, Badosa is back to her best and competing fiercely on the court.

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Yeah, I'm super happy to see her back. When she was struggling, I saw her matches, how tough it was for her and how much she struggled. I tried to kind of help her, like talking about stuff. Seeing her right now on her. I would say she's back on her top level. That's really amazing, and I'm really happy for her, and she deserves it, you know. She's a fighter. She's hard-working girl. She's an amazing person. I mean, she deserves it all.
Aryna Sabalenka said at a press conference

Badosa has started her campaign at the 2024 US Open in style, beating Viktorija Golubic 6-0, 6-3 in the first round and Taylor Townsend 6-3, 7-5 in the second round. She is set to face Elena-Gabriela Ruse next.

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Aryna Sabalenka describes her friendship with Paula Badosa

It is widely known that Aryna Sabalenka and Paula Badosa share a great friendship. Despite being opponents on the court, they have always remained very close personally. When Sabalenka was asked to describe her friendship with the Spanish ace, the Belarusian fell short of words.

Aryna-Sabalenka_Paula-Badosa
Aryna Sabalenka and Paula Badosa (The Independent)

Nevertheless, Sabalenka described how amazing it was to have someone who has a similar mindset about almost everything. The Belarusian emphasized the fact that they can manage their friendship despite sharing a good rivalry on the tennis court.

Oh, wow. How would I describe that? It's just an amazing thing, you know, to find someone so similar to you and having the same kind of mindset, same thoughts on different topics and just be able to talk to someone and to have fun with someone. Just to have a friend, that's really awesome. Especially when you're opponents on court and to be able to manage this stuff, that's really important.
Aryna Sabalenka expressed

Badosa and Sabalena never miss a moment to express their love and fondness for each other. Despite their friendship, the two players have enjoyed a good rivalry on the court. They have faced each other seven times on the tour, with the Belarusian leading 5-2 in the head-to-head.

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