Aryna Sabalenka defeats Paula Badosa in a hard-fought match at French Open

NEW DELHI: Second seed Aryna Sabalenka momentarily set aside her friendship with Spaniard Paula Badosa to clinch a hard-fought 7-5, 6-1 victory in the third round of the French Open on Saturday, keeping her quest for a maiden Roland Garros title alive.

Despite their strong bond since 2021, Sabalenka and Badosa engaged in a fiercely contested first set, exchanging early breaks. Badosa capitalized on Sabalenka's powerful serve in the sixth game, gaining the upper hand with a return that caught the net cord.


"It's tough to play your best friend. She's an incredible player coming back after injury and I'm pretty sure she's going to be back on top very soon," said Sabalenka, who improved her head-to-head record with Badosa to 5-2. "On court we're opponents, I'm trying not to watch on the other side, just trying to focus on myself and just bring my best game, but anyway they're tough matches against her."

Motivated by the challenge, Aryna Sabalenka, the formidable Australian Open champion, swiftly retaliated, breaking back with a triumphant scream that resonated with cheers from fans at Philippe Chatrier court. She then overcame another service loss against her equally skilled 26-year-old opponent.

The 2021 semi-finalist demonstrated her prowess by unleashing a powerful forehand to take a 6-5 lead. She followed it up with a delightful backhand slice from a deep position to close out the tense opening set, leaving world number 139 Paula Badosa to ponder over her missed opportunities.

Despite her struggles with a back problem in recent years, Sabalenka, a former world number two with two Grand Slam titles under her belt, faced a disappointing start in the second set as her Belarusian rival dominated, winning four consecutive games.

Sabalenka's skill was evident when she executed a superb drop shot to set up match point. The final blow came from an unforced error by the unseeded Badosa, leading to a warm embrace between the opponents at the net.

"Some days it's actually getting more complicated to play," Sabalenka said of the variety in her game. "You have so many options, you're thinking too much but today was a day where I wasn't thinking that much, I was just feeling the game and I was trusting myself and just was going for all the shots."

Sabalenka, aiming to emulate Serena Williams' feat from 2015 by winning both the Australian Open and Roland Garros titles in the same season, will now meet either American 14th seed Madison Keys or 22nd seed Emma Navarro in her next match.

(Inputs from Reuters)