Paula Badosa and Liudmila Samsonova will take on each other in the round of 32 of the 2023 WTA Abu Dhabi Open on February 7.
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Due to an abductor injury, Paula Badosa was forced to withdraw from the Adelaide semifinal and the Australian Open entirely, which was a setback for her early in the season. After a challenging 2022, she appeared to have found her bearings after defeating Anett Kontaveit, Kaia Kanepi, and Beatriz Haddad Maia in Adelaide in straight sets. In addition to four different retirements from competition last year, she only managed two victories in her final seven tournaments (Toronto to Guadalajara). She has already dropped out of the top 20 and will have to defend a lot of ground in the Miami quarterfinal and Indian Wells semifinal early in the following month.
The first tournaments Liudmila Samsonova competed in as a top 20 player didn’t produce any noteworthy outcomes. Instead, the Russian lost in straight sets to players like Aryna Sabalenka, Amanda Anisimova, and Donna Vekic to exit either the first or second round of Adelaide (twice) and the Australian Open. The 24-year-old proceeded to take off towards the end of the season after a slow patch in the middle of last year. Between August and October, she competed in six outdoor hard-court tournaments, winning a whopping 20 of them. These victories helped her win titles in Washington, Cleveland, and Tokyo as well as places in the last 16 at the US Open and Guadalajara.
| Paula Badosa vs Liudmila Samsonova | Match details |
|---|---|
| Date | February 7, 2023 |
| Surface | Hard courts |
| Tournament | Abu Dhabi Open |
| Stage | Round of 32 |
| Time (India) | 5:45 pm |
| Time (Abu Dhabi) | 4:15 pm |
| Opponent | Score |
|---|---|
| Daria Kasatkina | Walkover (L) |
| Beatriz Haddad-Maia | 7-6, 7-5 (W) |
| Kaia Kanepi | 6-1, 7-5 (W) |
| Anett Kontaveit | 6-4, 6-3 (W) |
| Victoria Azarenka | Walkover (L) |
| Opponent | Score |
|---|---|
| Donna Vekic | 6-3, 6-0 (L) |
| Jasmine Paolini | 6-2, 6-4 (W) |
| Amanda Anisimova | 7-5, 6-3 (L) |
| Aryna Sabalenka | 7-6, 7-6 (L) |
| Zhang Shuai | 5-7, 6-3, 6-0 (W) |
2-0 is Liudmila Samsonova’s lead. The Russian won their 2021 Australian Open first-round match, 6-7, 7-6, 7-5, coming back from 3-5 down in the deciding set. This victory came two and a half years after the Russian defeated 2018 ITF El Espinar. Paula Badosa, who has only ever competed in Abu Dhabi’s third round (2021), will be eager to make amends.
| Tournament | Winner | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 Australian Open | Liudmila Samsonova | 6-7, 7-6, 7-5 |
| 2018 ITF El Espinar | Liudmila Samsonova | Walkover |
Paula Badosa and Liudmila Samsonova will take on each other in the round of 32 of the 2023 WTA Abu Dhabi Open on February 7.
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