Former world number two Paula Badosa (Spain) admitted that the back pain that has plagued her since her fracture last year is threatening her career and that she is relying on cortisone injections to make it “three or four more years”.
“At Indian Wells, the doctors told me it would be very difficult to continue my career”, said Paula Badosa, who fell to No 101 in the WTA rankings this week, admitted for the first time on a podcast. “I told them I needed a solution, something. We tried cortisone injections. They told me there was nothing else they could offer me and maybe I should continue with the injections. The pain is constant. Sometimes it’s unbearable, sometimes I can bear it”, explained the 26-year-old Spanish tennis player, specifying that she is treated daily.
She estimates that if she can play for another 3 or 4 years, “it will be great”. She does not set any goals, but she wants to return to the Top 30 in the world, and “in a year or a year and a half and in the Top 10”. The difficulty is that she has to play in fewer tournaments on the advice of doctors.
“Playing on clay is fine, on grass – it’s fine, but on hard courts I suffer the most”, said Paula Badosa.
Since the 2023 WTA 1000 Rome Open, where she suffered the fracture, she has missed many competitions – including Roland Garros and the US Open – and has not recorded three consecutive victories.
In Stuttgart last week, she was forced to retire in the second round with a left thigh muscle injury. Paula Badosa will play at the WTA 1000 Madrid Open.
