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After clinching a hard-fought victory over Zhang Shuai in the China Open quarter-final, Paula Badosa made a heartfelt gesture.
Despite Zhang’s impressive 24-match comeback streak that began in January 2023, Badosa halted her progress with a 6-1, 7-6(4) win on Thursday.
Following the match, Badosa took a moment during her on-court interview to express admiration for her opponent.
Zhang, who had been granted a wildcard into the main draw, became the talk of the tournament in Beijing by snapping her lengthy losing streak and then stunning world No. 8 Emma Navarro in the second round before pushing the 15th seed Badosa to the brink in their quarterfinal clash.
Badosa, moved by Zhang’s journey, which included a significant break from tennis amid her struggles, requested to share a special message with Zhang after the match.
“First of all, I want to say some words to Shuai,” Badosa said, acknowledging Zhang’s resilience and character. “She’s amazing as a person, you can see the level today also. I’m really happy for her because I know she went through very tough times but it shows how much of a fighter she is.
The Spanish tennis star continued to praise Zhang, highlighting her positive attitude and support within the tennis community. “She’s great, her team is great, she’s always with a smile, even supporting me during the tour so it’s great to have a tennis player like her.”
Badosa has shared that she encouraged Zhang to stay in tennis, lamenting her rough patch, and recounted at the net: “And what I told her in the net, that she shouldn’t retire because her level is really, really high.”
Zhang, who contemplated retirement prior to the tournament, seems rejuvenated by this week’s performance, eschewing the idea post-heroics.
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Reflecting on the magnitude of her recent quarter-final success compared to 2018, Zhang confessed: “Yeah, because this time when I coming to Beijing, I have a lot pressure and nervous because I already got 24 match lost.”
Feeling overwhelmed by the thought of facing her supporters with another defeat, she admitted: “I have no idea how to win the match. Also I don’t want another one more lost, 25 coming, with all Chinese fans. I don’t know. When I think about this, I’m really sad.”
In a moment of uncertainty before the event, Zhang revealed her internal struggle: “I don’t know. Walking back to the locker room, I don’t know I should continue or not before the tournament. When I start to thinking about this, I feel I have no idea I should continue my singles match or stop or continue or maybe another 10 more match lost waiting for me. Yeah, I mean, very tough almost two years, more than one and a half years, without any winning.”