‘It Was Crazy’- Spanish Tennis Star Paula Badosa Says Maria Sharapova Comparisons Drove Her Into Depression for a Few Years

Spain has given some of the greatest tennis players in the history of tennis. Rafael Nadal, Carlos Alcaraz, and Pauls Badosa are among those stars. The champions from Spain hold an excellent position in the tennis world and have made their country proud. However, they have also faced a lot of problems. Paula Badosa recently talked openly about her struggles with mental health and what made her slip into depression.

The former world number two brought attention to the difficulties faced by young talents that are not discovered by the public. 

Paula Badosa talks about her mental health struggles

Badosa succeeded in the game, but it wasn’t easy at first. The Spanish player has been struggling with anxiety and depression from a very young age. She was recently invited to a WTA, the real me series, where women players open up about their struggles. She talked about how she was burdened with an overwhelming public response.

She recalled the time when she entered the tennis circuit as a young player; she was constantly compared with Maria Sharapova. Badosa said, “For me, it was crazy because I‌ was compared especially they were like the next Maria Sharapova and I was very, very young and um, and I wasn’t prepared to listen to all that.”

According to the former world number two, compared with the Russian player created a lot of extra pressure on her and people started expecting her to win every match.

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However, she slipped into depression and was not able to handle it. She added, “I was dealing with a lot of mental health issues because my head wasn’t prepared to listen to all that things.”

She further agreed she was not mature enough to deal with these things and has wasted years resolving this issue. During that time, she was not even advancing in the ranks and was losing a lot of matches.

Badosa out of the San Diego Open

The world number four is currently active on the WTA tours. She was participating in the San Diego Open, where she even advanced to the quarterfinals. But faced defeat against 2022 Australian Open finalist Danielle Collins. 

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However, this was their first meeting on the tennis court. Notably, this was Collins’ 100th WTA victory of her career, which she achieved in the quarterfinals. And among her top 10 victories this year, including the Australian Open finals, this one is regarded as the tenth-best.