Roland-Garros: Badosa into third round, next faces bestie Sabalenka for third time this year

Spaniard Paula Badosa edged out Kazakh Yulia Putintseva 4-6, 6-1, 7-5 to advance to the third round of Roland-Garros in Paris on Thursday.

“I’m happy about the performance. I think it was a very tricky match. She’s a very competitive player, so I was expecting a tough battle. Really happy I got through it and really looking forward for the next one,” Badosa told the media after her win.

“Sharing the court with Aryna after all these results she’s doing and all this is a pleasure for me” – Badosa

Badosa’s win sets up a third round clash against her best friend on tour, the Belarusian Aryna Sabalenka, who is seeded No 2.

This will be the third time that the two close friends are facing off in 2024 – Sabalenka won their clash in Miami in straight sets as well as in Charleston, where Badosa had to retire mid-way through the deciding set due to injury.

“I’m really looking forward for that match. I think the last time it finished in a sad way, so I learned a lot from that match also,” the Spaniard said. “I think it was a very good one from both sides. I know what I’m going to find from her side Saturday. I know how I have to play against her. So, I think it’s going to be fun.
Of course sharing the court with her after all these results she’s doing and all this is a pleasure for me, because, this past year hasn’t been easy. So playing these kind of matches, it makes it all worth it”

The Belarusian leads their head-to-head 4-2, winning their last four clashes.

The Spaniard edged out No 26 seed Katie Boulter (4-6, 7-5, 6-4) in the previous round.

During the first round, Putintseva, ranked No 39, won against American Sloane Stephens (6-1, 6-2).

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Paris (Grand Slam), other second-round matches (Roland-Garros, clay, EUR 53.478.000, most recent results first):

• Elena Rybakina (4) beat Arantxa Rus: 6-3, 6-4
• Aryna Sabalenka beat Moyuka Uchijima (Q): 6-2, 6-2
• Dayana Yastremska (30) beat Yafan Wang: 6-2, 6-0
• Katerina Siniakova vs. Chloe Paquet: thursday
• Donna Vekic beat Marta Kostyuk (18): 7-5, 6-4
• Anastasia Potapova beat Viktorija Golubic: 6-2, 6-2
• Coco Gauff (3) beat Tamara Zidansek (Q): 6-3, 6-4
• Iga Swiatek (1) beat Naomi Osaka: 7-6 (1), 1-6, 7-5
• Ons Jabeur (8) beat Camila Osorio: 6-3, 1-6, 6-3
• Sofia Kenin beat Caroline Garcia (21): 6-3, 6-3
• Xinyu Wang vs. Viktoriya Tomova
• Liudmila Samsonova vs. Amanda Anisimova
• Katie Volynets vs. Marketa Vondrousova
• Elina Svitolina vs. Diane Parry
• Danielle Collins vs. Olga Danilovic
• Victoria Azarenka vs. Mirra Andreeva
• Hailey Baptiste vs. Jasmine Paolini
• Anna Kalinskaya vs. Bianca Andreescu
• Madison Keys vs. Mayar Sherif
• Peyton Stearns vs. Daria Kasatkina
• Varvara Gracheva vs. Bernarda Pera
• Ana Bogdan vs. Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova
• Irina-Camelia Begu vs. Linda Noskova
• Elina Avanesyan vs. Anna Blinkova
• Qinwen Zheng vs. Tamara Korpatsch
• Sara Errani vs. Emma Navarro
• Elise Mertens vs. Petra Martic
• Leylah Fernandez vs. Xiyu Wang
• Cristina Bucsa vs. Elisabetta Cocciaretto
• Jana Fett vs. Marie Bouzkova
• Jelena Ostapenko vs. Clara Tauson