A stroke of luck has smiled upon Paula Badosa! The 26-year-old player is currently fighting her battles in Cincinnati. And after a straight-set victory against Yulia Putintseva, she is all set to produce a similar result in the quarterfinals against Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova. While Badosa is immersed in her matches in Cincy, her potential to propel forward at the upcoming U.S. Open tournament seems more vivid, especially given her current ranking!

Badosa’s “smart” choice to skip the Olympics and concentrate on the Citi Open was indeed a pragmatic decision for her! As she won the competition in Washington, DC, it built up more confidence in Badosa, who was also suffering from back pain earlier. Besides, her Cincinnati Masters quarterfinal entry has added an extra layer of advantage for the former World No. 2, solidifying her position at No. 31 in the current WTA ranking.

This has proved beneficial for Badosa, who can heave a sigh of relief as she is now seeded for the U.S. Open! In Grand Slam tournaments, 32 players are seeded. Now Badosa, being one of them, will have the opportunity to capitalize on the upcoming favorable draw matches in New York. Her seeding ensures she won’t meet top contenders or other seeded players until later in the tournament. As a result, the opening rounds will allow her to build momentum and confidence, potentially leading to a deep run in the competition.

Badosa was at No. 34 after when she defeated Anna Kalinskaya in the round-of-32 match in Cincinnati (3-2, 2-6). But as the tennis world watched with bated breath, soon she jumped three more rankings to reach the spot (31) just below Putintseva. However, if she manages to overpower her quarterfinal opponents, an even higher rank is waiting for her. 

Last year, the 26-year-old’s U.S. Open dreams came to an abrupt end due to her recurring back problems. Not only did the Spaniard withdraw from the tournament, but she took the rest of the season off to heal, with the promise of coming back “stronger than ever,” next year. During the start of this season, we saw her struggle with her form once again as she faced repeated early-round eliminations from multiple tournaments. But as the grass court season commenced, she gradually tried to find her rhythm back.

And now, as Badosa prepares for the US Open, her seeding provides a promising start! Furthermore, the former World No. 2 now feels motivated to bring her ‘A’ game on-court too!

Badosa shares the significance of feeling “strong” in a match!

In 2023, Badosa had to miss three of the four major tournaments. But what scared her more was the prospect of leaving tennis due to her injury and the treatment that followed. “It’s really is a roller coaster, and you wake up every day not doing what is going to happen,” Badosa said, recalling those days.

But she saw the light at the end of the tunnel when she produced her best Wimbledon grand slam finish in two years by reaching the second round. Now that she is back on track once again, Badosa opened up about how she found the motivation to keep going.

“I think it’s very important for me to feel strong, to feel that I can play tough matches, to feel that I can play long rallies also. So, once I felt that, I think it went straight to my mindset, to my mentality, and then when I feel strong in that area, I feel strong mentally, so I start to feel competitive again.”

Badosa concluded by saying, “You’ll have to see me for a few more years now!” Her experience and mental toughness will be crucial to navigating the challenges ahead. Will she be able to seize the opportunity at the U.S. Open and make a lasting impact there? Stay tuned to find out!