Paula Badosa Breaks Her Ceiling in New York

Paula Badosa now holds the best result of her career in the US Open. The Spanish tennis player continues her dream summer after defeating Taylor Townsend (6-3, 7-5) this Wednesday to advance to the third round of the New York Grand Slam for the first time in her life.

Badosa, who was eliminated in the second round in 2021 and 2022, has won two consecutive matches at the US Open for the first time, doing so by overcoming a local player, which is no small feat in this tournament. The Catalan had to battle not only with Townsend but also with a fully supportive Louis Armstrong Stadium, the tournament's second most important court, which was backing its home player, who had ample opportunities in the second set to extend the match.

With eleven victories in her last thirteen matches—now twelve out of fourteen—it was clear that confidence was on the Spaniard's side. However, Townsend, with an aggressive style of hitting, moving forward, and finishing at the net, also came from good results. She reached the quarterfinals in Toronto and the round of 16 in Cincinnati.

A great doubles player, where she has won a Grand Slam and reached two finals, Townsend was an easy target for Badosa to maneuver in long rallies. The Spaniard had no problem when the match was decided on those terms. The American needed high levels of precision to have chances, and with 19 unforced errors in the first set, that was a pipe dream. This, combined with Badosa's first serve, which only lost four points, led to a 6-3 score that brought her closer to victory.

However, Townsend sharpened her game and went from hitting five winners in the first set to 18 in the second. The improvement was reflected in the scoreline as she opened a gap and maintained a break with a 3-3 tie. With a 5-4 lead and serving to force a third set, she self-destructed. She accumulated error after error and fell into a spiral of four consecutive lost games. From 5-3 it quickly turned to 5-7, where a dead ball mid-court handed Badosa the victory.

With this result, Badosa surpasses the 2,000-point barrier and climbs to number 23 in the world rankings. She will face the surprising Elena Gabriela Ruse in the next round. Ruse pulled off the upset of the day by eliminating Wimbledon champion Barbora Krejcikova 7-5, 6-4. The Romanian player, who came through the qualifying rounds, has already won five matches in New York and has only dropped one set along the way. It will be their second encounter after Ruse's victory in Dubai 2022.