Paula Badosa easily beaten in first match at Abu Dhabi Open after her return to top 10
WTA
After an extraordinary Australian Open, in which she reached the semifinals of a Grand Slam for the first time in her career, Paula Badosa returned to the Top 10 of the WTA rankings. Her first tournament after the Oceania tour was the Abu Dhabi Open. The Spaniard made her debut against a tough nut to crack, the promising 20-year-old Czech Linda Noskova.
The first six games of the match were in favor of the servers, without conceding a single break point. But everything changed from there. The players exchanged three breaks that favored Noskova. The young Czech was able to serve for the first set and did it with honors, a game in white to finish and place the 6-4 on the scoreboard.
The second set had no turnaround either. Noskova began by breaking Badosa's serve, who could do nothing against a much more powerful and powerful opponent. The only game she could win in this second set was the rest, to put the 3-1 on the electronic. The joy did not last long, as the Czech took the last three to put the final 6-1.
Noskova will now play in the quarterfinals against the winner of the match currently being played between Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova and Magda Linette. Whatever happens, the Czech will have chances to reach the semis. For her part, Badosa will now have more time to rest and prepare for the Sunshine Double. Let's remember that the most important title of her career came at Indian Wells, back in 2021, and then she will have the Miami Open before moving on to clay.
In the zone 🫡
— wta (@WTA) February 5, 2025
Linda Noskova locks in the win over No.2 seed Badosa in commanding fashion, 6-4, 6-1!#MubadalaAbuDhabiOpen pic.twitter.com/SP3eV3Zwb4
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