Former World No. 2 Paula Badosa has endured a difficult 2023 so far. She sustained an abductor injury during her Adelaide International quarterfinal appearance. The injury forced her to withdraw from the Australian Open and the Abu Dhabi Open. Consequently, she slipped down the WTA Tour rankings. Right now, the Spaniard is ranked World No. 35. However, she will be hoping to put her abductor injury well and truly behind her as she makes every effort to find a good run of form back on the WTA circuit.

Badosa’s emotions were running high ahead of her quarterfinal encounter with Jelena Ostapenko at the Italian Open, and the Spaniard took to Instagram to share them with her followers. As it turned out, Badosa was missing one of her former coaches who unfortunately passed away in 2019.

Paula Badosa shares an emotional Instagram post as she brings back fond memories of her former coach

Paula Badosa was only 7 years old when her family decided to move to Barcelona. Following the move, her family introduced her to tennis, and for Badosa, there was no looking back. At the core of her rise to the top of the professional game was her childhood coach, who ensured that Badosa’s tennis fundamentals were spot on.

As she matured into a fearsome player, Badosa moved on to other coaches with more experience in handling professionals. However, she never forgot the contribution of her childhood coach. Unfortunately, her childhood coach passed away 4 years ago, and Badosa still carries him deep within her heart.

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In a heart-wrenching Instagram post, Badosa shared a few photos that showed her training with her childhood coach. Badosa wrote, “It’s been 4 years, but you’ll always remain in my heart. You give me strength everyday. Miss you.”

Paula Badosa’s coaches since she moved on from her childhood coach

Despite the incredible impact and influence that Paula Badosa’s childhood coach had on her, she decided to move on to a coach with more experience than him at the top level. She appointed Xavi Budo as her first pro-level coach. However, following the 2020 US Open, she switched coaches again as she appointed Javier Marti.

However, Badosa’s stint with Marti didn’t last long. After training under him for only 11 months, Badosa changed coaches again. This time, she replaced Marti with iconic Spanish coach Jorge Garcia. It marked the beginning of Badosa’s second spell under the tutelage of Garcia, who had trained Badosa back when she was a junior-level player.

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