Paula Badosa travelled to Mexico with hopes to qualify for the 2022 WTA Finals, but her journey ended earlier than she expected.
The 24-years-old Spanish player took on Victoria Azarenka in the first round of the tournament and as a 13th player in the WTA Race Rankings, she needed a few victories to secure her spot at the year-end event.
However, Paula Badosa got broken twice early and after just 29 minutes, she lost the first set to Victoria Azarenka 2-6. Then, she made a decision to retire from the match as an injury troubled her and lost all chances to qualify for the WTA Finals. After the match, her opponent said:
"You never want anybody to retire, we go out here to compete and do our best," Azarenka said on the court. "It's really sad that Paula wasn't able to finish the match. I hope she recovers quickly. I'm sure we're going to have a few more matches to play, so I'm looking forward to those."
Badosa wanted to apologize and thank to all the fans that supported her in Mexico and so she soon wrote a message for them on social media that stated:
"I'm sorry I had to withdraw, I'm very sad. I was trying everything to be able to compete today but my body said enough is enough. I have gone completely to the limit to be able to try to compete..."
"I wanted to try even if I was at 50% because playing in Guadalajara for me is like playing at home. I'm very sorry for all the fans who were there today, you are one of the best audiences there is, thanks for making me feel so loved. Until next year and thanks Guadalajara Open, you are the best," concluded Badosa.
In 2022, Paula Badosa will finish the year outside of Top 10 of the WTA Rankings and despite still being enrolled for the 2022 Billie Jean King Cup Finals, she may not be able to compete in Glasgow.
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