The last Spaniard in the women’s draw at the Australian Open, Paula Badosa, fell in the third round to the American Amanda Anisimova 7-5, 6-4, after one hour and 28 minutes.
The Girona native said goodbye to Melbourne Park with a good feeling after being sidelined from the competition for six months due to a stress injury in her back, with two resounding victories in the first rounds against the American Taylor Townsend and the Russian Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, and a worthy fight against a reborn Anisimova, who showed the tennis that delighted the Paris public after reaching the semifinals of Roland Garros in 2019.
“Resetting, spending time at home helped me. I’m very happy to be back,” commented Anisimova after she decided to take a break and withdraw from the competition due to problems related to her mental health.
“It’s very uncomfortable to play against her because she finds the winners very easily. She plays very flat and doesn’t give you any rhythm. The truth is that she played incredible, so congratulations on the match,” said Badosa in the press conference after her defeat. “Perhaps with a physical advantage it would have helped me. It has cost me a little more than necessary but I think she has played perfectly,” he added in reference to her physical condition, which has not yet reached its full potential as a result of the six months of inactivity due to a back injury.
Badosa commented that tennis has changed today and you can find yourself facing a dangerous tennis player in the first rounds of a slam competition. “Before the difficulties came in the quarterfinals but now anyone can win from the first rounds,” said the tennis player, who hoped to be able to play “the more matches the better” to recover her physical condition and her tennis level as quickly as possible. .
Badosa opened the day in the half-empty John Cain Arena that took on better color as the games went by. The Catalan started at a devilish pace without letting a subdued Anisimova take the initiative, until establishing the 4-1 score in the light.
The American woke up and brought out a better version that helped her in the past to compete in the semifinals at Roland Garros (2019), against a powerless Badosa who became a mere spectator. Anisimova was responsible for executing winning shots, but also for making unforced errors, but the winners ended up winning despite their problems with double faults, until they completed the comeback to the final 7-5, after scoring the fifth set point. that he had to serve.
The 22-year-old American girl, who is currently outside the top-400, finished the first set with serious pain in her abdominal area and received a warning from the chair umpire for failing to comply with the 25 seconds between points with her service, as a result of their problems to recover.
The first set ended with 24 winners from Anisimova to 12 from the Spanish, as well as 22 unforced errors from the American to 8 from the Girona, a statistic that portrayed the extremely aggressive approach of the North American.
The second set did not have so many ups and downs after both tennis players showed more solvency with the first, and therefore more security when it came to maintaining the games on serve, until an inspired Anisimova made three incontestable returns with 3-3, to score a ‘break’ that would end up being definitive for the final 6-4.
The Spaniard finished the match with 18 winners, which contrasted with Anisimova’s 40. Badosa virtually climbed 18 spots to No. 82 on the WTA list after she missed the competition due to injury last year.
The New Jersey player’s next rival could be the Belarusian and current champion Aryna Sabalenka, in the event that the number two surpasses the Ukrainian Lesia Tsurenko (28).
