Returning from an injury that kept her out for six months, Paula Badosa (74 WTA) was again forced to withdraw in the first round of the WTA in Dubai.

Paula BadosPhoto: Rob Prange / Zuma Press / Profimedia

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Paula Badosa, the second seed this year at the WTA in Dubai

Pulled out of Wimbledon 2023 due to a back injury, Paula Bados returned to the tennis court earlier this year, but the results are still far from expectations.

After a first-round exit in Adelaide, the Spaniard reached the third round of the Australian Open, but had to bow out again in the round of 16 in Hua Hin, Thailand.

In a match against Switzerland’s Lulu Sun (181 WTA) from WTA Dubai, Badosa managed only one set, which her opponent won without much trouble.

At its conclusion, the former WTA No. 2 winner (April 2022) left the field in tears, again complaining of back pain.

The Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships runs from February 18 to 24 on hard, is part of the “WTA 1000” category and has a total prize pool of $3,211,715. Simona Halep won the tournament in 2015 and 2020, and the reigning champion is Barbora Krejcikova.

The main favorites from Dubai: Iga Svyatek (1), Aryna Sabalenko (2), Coco Gauf (3), Olena Rybakina (4), Ons Jaber (5/forfeit), Qinwen Zheng (6), Marketa Vondrousova (7), Maria Sakkari (8).

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