DUBAI DUTY FREE TENNIS CHAMPIONSHIPS

February 18, 2025

Paula Badosa

Dubai Duty Free Tennis Stadium

Press Conference

P. BADOSA/E. Mertens

6-2, 6-1

THE MODERATOR: Paula, congrats. Great performance. What were you most happy with your game today?

PAULA BADOSA: Pretty much everything today I think it worked well. I was feeling very good, serving well, returning well. Good feeling.

I'm pleased with my level today.

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. What was it like playing through the conditions, a bit of rain?

PAULA BADOSA: Yeah, I was surprised because I live here. I've never seen, like, rain. One or two days in the last four years. So imagine.

For me was surprising and sometimes a little bit tricky because you're stopping, getting a little bit cold. My reaction after that was really good. Yeah, I served well that first game. That was important to start well the second set. Yeah, happy.

Q. What made you choose Dubai as your training base? Does it now feel like home?

PAULA BADOSA: Yeah, definitely it feels it. I love the country. I love the city. I feel very comfortable here. The facilities are amazing. Of course, the weather. Where it is. Like, it's very easy when you go to Australia, to Asia. A little bit that made me take the decision.

Also there's a lot of players. So very easily, especially in pre-season, I train with all of them. It's nice.

Q. You started the season very well, semis in Australia. Step by step you're back to a good level of play. Do you believe this year is going to be different? Maybe you want to achieve more and more, Masters or majors?

PAULA BADOSA: Yeah, why not? It's always the goal. I'm playing well. I'm feeling well. As I always say, I want to enjoy the daily things, the journey. While I'm doing that, giving my best.

Of course, improving every day a little bit, a little bit more. Getting back to where I want to be. Of course, I am there now, but you always want a little bit more (smiling).

Yeah, trying to have deep runs in Masters 1000s and of course in majors.

Q. The new style of play right now, do you prefer clay or grass or hard courts?

PAULA BADOSA: Honestly, I don't really know. There's some years I say clay. There's some years hard courts. I think my game can adapt pretty well on everything.

Maybe if I have to choose, now that I'm serving well and everything, I would say hard courts. But maybe slow hard courts, a little bit similar to clay. Yeah, maybe that.

But I think my game can adapt pretty much on everything.

Q. Do you think you can win this tournament?

PAULA BADOSA: I mean, every tournament I'm participating it's the goal. It's always tough. There's amazing players, the best players in the world. But that's a little bit the goal. Go day by day.

What I want is to give my best every day. Today was a great level, so I'm really happy with that. The first day was a little bit less. But every day keep improving.

Q. A month removed now from the Australian Open, are the emotions clear now having had more time to process the big results, getting back into the top 10?

PAULA BADOSA: Yeah, it's a lot of things. I don't know how I do it, but I always do it in an extreme way (smiling). Four years ago it was super fast from 70 to No. 2. Last year was the same.

Like in four months I was already 11 in the world. So I always do it this way. Sometimes it takes some time to realize, accept and adapt to the new position. Last year, I was used to maybe being the underdog till the end of the season. Now all of a sudden I'm the favorite. Sometimes it's tough to handle the pressure, anxiety in that moment or the stress.

But I'm trying. I'm working on it. I'm more mature, older now than a few years ago. That's a little bit the goal, to learn how to deal with it because sometimes when you're the favorite, also it's tricky because your opponents play a little bit more free, so the level is higher.

Yeah, that's a little bit the goal this year, to be there and to fight for big titles, but also learning how to deal with expectations.

Q. Is that what you were experiencing in Doha and Abu Dhabi?

PAULA BADOSA: 100%. I don't know if you saw the matches, but I was getting destroyed (laughter).

But, I mean, the two opponents, it could happen. With that opponents, they're amazing talents. They play very free. When they don't have pressure, they're super dangerous.

But I have to say that in that matches, I don't know if I was going in as a favorite because they were crushing the ball.

Q. If you meet your best friend Sabalenka, do you think this time you're going to beat her?

PAULA BADOSA: Well, I still have a lot of rounds to beat. I think I have a really tough one next. Hopefully I can beat her soon. Next time I will give her the gift, not she has to give it to me (winking).

Q. How do you see the competition this year as compared to the previous editions?

PAULA BADOSA: They're always super tough. They're the best players in the world here. It's a Masters 1000. It's always an amazing field of players.

Yeah, the level is going to be high and you have to give your 100% if you want to do well here.

Q. I think last year you talked about writing in the notebook about how you wanted to be back in the top 70. You smashed that goal. Did you go back to the notebook during the pre-season and what goals might you have written?

PAULA BADOSA: You know, I have to say in that notebook - this is a small secret - after Paris and clay court season, I'm going to show it just to prove it, in that notebook I said where I wanted to be a year after, what ranking, where do I see myself a year after, after all the struggles, how do I see myself in Rome 2025.

I said I'm going to be back in the top 10. I'm happy that I came sooner. What I want to say with that is when you have self-belief and you trust the process, you really want it, I think dreams can come true, yeah.