"It’s extremes for me": Paula Badosa admits still 'learning' to play under pressure after series of poor results following Australian Open performances

Spain’s Paula Badosa has spoken about the difficulty of playing under pressure. The 27-year-old was once regarded as the next big thing, but injuries have halted her career to some extent.

Badosa returned to the court in 2023 after suffering a serious back injury. Since then, the New York-born star has been sensational on the court. Recently, she played in the semifinal of the Australian Open where her journey ended after losing to her friend and the reigning world number one Aryna Sabalenka in straight sets with a score of 6-4, 6-2.

Since then, however, things have not gone according to the plan for the world number 10 as she suffered early exits from the Abu Dhabi Open and Qatar Open. She most recently participated in the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships, where her journey ended after losing in the round of 16 Elena Rybakina with a score of 4-6, 7-6, 7-6.

Before facing the one-time Grand Slam winner, Badosa spoke to Gulf News where she talked about the difficulty of playing under pressure compared to playing as an underdog. She was of the opinion that she is still learning how play under pressure.

“It’s extremes for me,” she said. “Four years ago, I went super fast from No. 70 to No. 2. Last year was the same — within four months, I was already world No. 11. So I always do it this way,” she said with a wry smile. “Last year, I was used to being the underdog until the end of the season. Now, all of a sudden, I’m the favourite. Sometimes it’s tough to handle the pressure, but I’m learning.”

Badosa also went on to express her love for Dubai, which, according to her, is a great place to live in with all the facilities. “I love the country. I love the city. I feel very comfortable in Dubai, and the facilities are amazing,” she said. “It’s easy to travel to many parts of the world, from Australia to Asia. There are a lot of players here, so it’s very easy to train with them, especially in the pre-season.”