With Paula Badosa Back on the slopes and leading the team, Spain is ready to face the final of the Billie Jean King Cup in Seville, which it will host, and which will take place from today until Sunday at Cartuja stadium. The venue, which usually hosts the matches of the national football team, has been transformed with the installation of two covered courts to offer the best possible conditions to the twelve leading teams on the planet. And among them is Spain, which returns a year later to Glasgow in the decisive phase of this tournament, considered the world team championship in women’s tennis.
Playing at home, and thus taking advantage of the field factor, which the protagonists consider so important in a format with these characteristics, the national team wants to renew its laurels and dream of conquering the sixth crown after the five that Spain won in the 90s, during the era of Arantxa and Conchita Martínez, who is also director of the tournament.
The big news from Spain is the presence of Badosa, current number 67 in the WTA. Today marks precisely four months since his last match on the circuit. She played it against the Ukrainian Kostyuk, at Wimbledon, and was unable to finish it due to a back injury which initially forced her to shorten the season and say goodbye until 2024. However, the New York-born Catalan recovered earlier than expected and Anabel Medinathe captain, included her among those summoned alongside Sara Sorribes, Rebeka Masarova, Cristina Bucsa and Marina Bussols.
“Tennis is not everything”
Badosa has tested himself these days on the slopes of La Cartuja, he feels no pain and has good sensations. Spain clings to its competitive capacity and its quality of tennis to, why not, dream of causing a sensation and succeeding Switzerland on the throne. “I missed tennis a lot because I love competition and it’s my life, but that’s not all. It’s good to know each other, I did other things, I learned to be patient and I enjoyed this moment. It was a journey during which I learned a lot,” Badosa confessed. As an anecdote, he was asked about the funny photos on social networks in which he appeared eating chocolate churros with Stefanos Tsitsipas. “We had a nice breakfast and enjoyed a little bit of Seville. The city is magnificent. And having some time to unplug before you start training is always important.
Spain is placed in Group C with Canada and Poland, against whom they will play respectively tomorrow and Friday at the same time (4:00 p.m.). The twelve teams are divided into four groups of three and only the first advance to the semi-finals. The Canadians have in their ranks the young Leylah Fernández and a dangerous doubles player, Gabriela Dabrowski, sixth in the world in the specialty. The Polish women are missing number two. Iga Swiatek, but Medina is not confident: “We have to prepare with the same concentration as if Swiatek were there. We must be vigilant and fight every point as if it were the last,” he said.
Among all the stars of the women’s circuit present in Seville, those who obtain the best ranking are the Kazakhs. Rybakin (4) and Czech Vondrousová (6), who have just played the WTA final in Cancun. Alongside Spain, Canada and Poland, Switzerland, the Czech Republic and the United States (Group A) aspire to glory; Australia, Kazakhstan and Slovenia (B); and France, Italy and Germany (D). The Australia-Slovenia (10:00 a.m.) and Switzerland-Czech Republic (4:00 p.m.) matches open the tournament today, which can be followed live on RTVE and Movistar.
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