Badosa, in search of the click that resists

Everything has started to go off without a hitch, with a more than neat victory against the American Louisa Chirico (6-2 and 6-1, in 56 minutes) and a good contact with the grass at Wimbledon.

However, Paula Badosa – quoted on Thursday at the second stop of the tournament with the Romanian Irina Bara, the 60th in the world – finds it difficult to get rid of the serious face that has accompanied her in recent times, in which she has entered a zone desert that tries to leave based on perseverance and will.

The sun does not finish rising for her, who still trusts that sooner or later her dynamics will be reversed.

“The click that I need is to continue in the line of work in which I am.

I understand that you can ask for more and more, but I think I'm fine and that it's been a very positive year”, the Catalan, who since reaching the top in Indian Wells last year – the first Spanish to achieve it – replies to this newspaper the circuit under a new condition that is learning to drive on the fly.

Abandoned the comfortable refuge of the platoon, it is up to her in this new stage to deal with the exposure and the fact that she is one of the marked wherever she goes.

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Few believe in Serena, except Serena herself.

"It's never easy to be one of the favourites," she explains.

“Now, the rivals play very loosely against me and I am living a year full of new experiences.

It is being hard and complicated, but I think it will help me a lot in the future.

Hopefully I can demonstrate the level of training ”, continues Begur, fourth seed in the great British team and who started the course with a bang in Sydney.

However, the approach of the gravel tour did not go as expected and from there, doubts and curves that she will try to overcome these days in London, where a year ago she reached the eighth.

Obtained the new status, Badosa (24 years old) trusts in the day to day and in that wide margin of progression that he treasures.

She does not want to be a player of moments, but to reaffirm herself among the strongest.

To do this, he must overcome the pothole – he yielded in the second round in Madrid, the second in Rome and the third in Roland Garros, before falling to the first in the Eastbourne preparatory – and meet again with the dominant tennis player who dazzled at the end of the last season.

From her She clings to the routine, to that effort and that stubbornness that have led her to rescue her career, but now she needs a change of direction.

Feliciano hunts down Federer

With only one rehearsal in the prelude to Wimbledon, in which she lost against the British Judie Burrage, she intends that the matches go through her racket again.

"It is very important that she is aware of myself, that she is aggressive and that she serves very well," she prescribes.

This is how she did it before Chirico, a sweet expert (236th) suitable to start her journey in London.

His victory was accompanied by those of Sara Sorribes (6-2 and 6-1 to Christina McHale) and Roberto Bautista (6-1, 6-0 and 6-2 to Attila Balasz).

They lost, however, Nuria Párrizas (7-5 ​​and 6-3 with Claire Liu), Carlos Taberner (7-6(5) with Opelka), Pedro Martínez (4-6, 6-4, 6-4 and 6- 1 against Alex Molcan), Bernabé Zapata (7-6 (6), 6-4 and 6-4 against Jack Sock), Roberto Carballés (6-4, 6-1 and 6-1 against Jordan Thompson) and Feliciano López (6-2, 6-3 and 6-3 for Botic van de Zandschulp).

As a consolation, the 40-year-old from Toledo reached Roger Federer's record for appearances (81) on the big stages.

Meanwhile, the duel between Garbiñe Muguruza and Greet Minnen was suspended due to lack of light, with 6-4 in favor of the latter.

On this Wednesday, Carlos Alcaraz faces (around 5:00 p.m., Movistar Deportes) Tallon Griekspoor.

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