“When I leave the tennis court I know there’s a big warm hug waiting for me,” gushes Stefanos Tsitsipas about girlfriend Paula Badosa. It’s not easy being in the same business, playing a tough sport like tennis, and still maintaining a healthy relationship. Tsitsidosa did go through a rough patch in May when they briefly broke up, but they’re back together now. In the summer of love, this tennis couple has made the US Open their own playground.

Tsitsipas and Badosa participated in the Fan Week preceding the first week of the Grand Slam and defeated Ben Shelton and Coco Gauff to take the Mixed Madness trophy home. It was the most epic date night, and afterward, the couple sat down to detail how they’re managing tennis, plus a successful relationship.

“She has brought a lot of blessings into my life and I’m proud I can call her my girlfriend and my life partner,” Tsitsipas said ahead of the Mixed Madness. “We have learned a lot from each other. We have learned how to fight, how to accept difficult situations, and try and grow through them.” Professionally, it has not been a great year for Tsitsipas by any means. On the contrary, Badosa is finally soaring high after too many physical issues. She has made it to the quarterfinals of the ongoing US Open and is all set to face the local star Emma Navarro next.

“We help each other, both of us, and try to give our own experiences and our own feedback and that’s really helpful coming from somebody as good as him. Lately, I’ve been playing very well and I’m happy off-court as well with Stef. You can see the relationship, it’s just going very natural and I think it’s very helpful for both of us,” the Spaniard says.

Like every major couple, Tsitsipas and Badosa have faced criticism for apparently letting their personal life seep onto the court. But if their comments are anything to go by, each is a professional player first. Being together has actually helped them make their game better.

“There’s always a shoulder that I can lean on and discuss things over but also be vulnerable and open up about anything that is carried deep inside of me. When I leave the tennis court I know there’s a big warm hug waiting for me,” says Tsitsipas. In fact, if you were to suggest to Paula Badosa to leave her personal life off the court, she would take offense.

“I could understand this criticism of distraction more if it was with a person from another world, but being two athletes with a very clear objective, what I think is that people don’t even know what they are judging,” Badosa told La Vanguardia.

If one were to look at it objectively, awkwardness is bound to seep between a tennis couple. Sharing the same passion professionally is all well, and good. But what happens when one half of the couple does well and the other faces tough losses? This has exactly been the case with Tsitsidosa in a reversal of fortunes.

As Tsitsipas stars in his own Greek tragedy, Paula Badosa makes a personal US Open record

After doing well at the exhibition match, Paula Badosa and Stefanos Tsitstsipas were expected to do better in the official mixed doubles. But instead, they lost to the Mexican pair of Giuliana Olmos and Santiago Gonzalez in the first round. To add salt to the wound, Tsitsipas also exited the US Open after a first-round loss in singles to Aussie Thanasi Kokkinakis. Badosa, on the other hand, is in the round of 8 in singles.

Having never made it past the second round in Flushing before, it’s a personal best record for the Spaniard. Dealing with constant injuries in the last few years, the former World No. 2 is finally regaining her form. But it certainly makes for an awkward dinner conversation with her boyfriend, who says, “I am nothing compared to the player I was before”.

At a tense moment in their mixed doubles match, Tsitsipas suddenly threw his racquet out of frustration. Badosa was understandably startled but defended the Greek player nonetheless. “I completely understand his situation and I’m there to support him, to help him. People empathize very little, but as long as I empathize and understand him, it’s all very well,” she said afterward.

While Tsitsidosa is not the only couple to go through this, their stardom makes them stand out more than the rest. While of course, off-court situations will unconsciously influence a player on the court, fans still hope that this tennis couple can make it through the worst of times and emerge victorious on the other side.