Paula Badosa was playing in her first career match at the Internazionali BNL d'Italia.
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Paula Badosa of Spain joined Collins in the Round of 16. Badosa breezed past World No. 50 Aliaksandra Sasnovich 6-1, 6-2 in an hour and 17 minutes. Despite her high ranking, Badosa was playing in her first career match at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia. The World No.3 triumphed in her tournament debut, hitting 17 winners and returning Sasnovich’s second serves with a 75% success rate. Badosa played with intensity to counter the aggressive gameplay of Sasnovich.
Badosa explained that she had to step up more and play with intensity as Sasnovich raised her game and she was going forward with an aggressive approach. She said that the second set was harder than the scoreline represented. “I think it was harder than the scoreline, especially the second set,” Badosa said afterward. “I think she raised her level a lot and she was going for it every time, very aggressive. I had to do a step more and play with more intensity, and I think I played really well, especially in the second set.”
Badosa went on a run after preserving a breakpoint in the first game, jumping out to a 5-0 lead. Things became more complicated from there, as Badosa saw five set points come and go in that game, allowing Sasnovich to score. Badosa then blew two more set chances as Sasnovich broke for a 5-2 lead. But Badosa grabbed an eighth set chance in the next game, which he won when Sasnovich let a forehand mistake sail long. In the second set, Badosa required four match chances to win following another long Sasnovich forehand. In the match, Sasnovich had seven break points but could only convert one.
Read More: Italian Open 2022: Danielle Collins storms past former World No.1 Simona Halep
Badosa will play Daria Kasatkina in the round of 16 after she overcame Leylah Fernandez in a third-set tiebreak on Wednesday. She won their lone prior match, which took place on hard court in the Sydney semifinals this year. Badosa expressed that Kasatkina is a tough opponent and clay surface being her favorite will be an added advantage so she’s expecting a tough play on the technical and the physical ground. “[Kasatkina] is always a tough opponent, she’s playing very well,” Badosa said. “Her favorite surface is clay courts, so I expect a very tough match there. A lot of rallies, and a tough one physically as well.”
