New York (AFP) – Spain’s Paula Badosa, ranked 12th in the world, has withdrawn from the US Open, tournament officials announced on Friday. The 27-year-old Spaniard, who has battled back issues similar to those that kept her from the 2023 US Open, will miss the Flushing Meadows fortnight for the second time in three seasons after making a US Open last-eight run in 2024.
Badosa, who reached her first Grand Slam semi-final at this year’s Australian Open, has not played since losing to Britain’s Katie Boulter in the first round at Wimbledon. Badosa had been set to pair with Britain’s Jack Draper in mixed doubles as well as compete in women’s singles.
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In an Instagram message posted Friday, Badosa recounted her struggles without saying she would drop out of the US Open. “I wasn’t built by easy days. I was shaped by the moments that broke me, the choices that didn’t go as planned and the times I fell short of who I wanted to be,” Badosa recalled on social media.
“Failure taught me what success never could. It humbled me. It forced me to look inward, to ask hard questions, to rebuild with more intention and clarity. Every mistake I made sharpened my understanding of who I am and who I’m not. And while I once feared those mistakes, I now see them as some of my greatest teachers.”
Badosa has won four WTA titles, the most recent coming last August in Washington. Her departure allows Swiss Jil Teichmann to reach the women’s main draw for the Grand Slam showdown, which starts August 24. France’s Alize Cornet moves into the first alternate spot for the main draw.
© 2024 AFP
