"I don't want to cry" - Paula Badosa turns emotional after reaching US Open QF in 'dream come true' moment amid injury struggles

Paula Badosa was overwhelmed with emotions after reaching her first quarterfinals at the US Open following her win over Wang Yafan. The Spaniard comfortably won 6-1, 6-2 in an hour and 21 minutes.

The Spaniard has been in phenomenal form at the Flushing Meadows, ousting Viktorija Golubic, Taylor Townsend, Elena-Gabriela Ruse, and Yafan to reach the second quarterfinals of her career in a Grand Slam.

Badosa struggled a chronic back injury for several months last year which caused her to withdraw from tournaments and retire from matches on many occasions. However, the former World No. 2 has been steadily trying to make her way back up.

During the on-court interview, an emotional Paula Badosa said that she didn't want to cry. She mentioned that she was heartbroken after withdrawing from the tournament last year, but returning and recreating her best result in a major is a dream come true moment.

“I don’t want to cry because last year I was here and had to withdraw. I couldn’t play the tournament. For me, it was really sad. Being back here a year later with my best result in a slam is a dream come true. I never thought about it."

She also said that she thought about quitting tennis last year because she had lost belief in herself.

"A few months ago I was thinking to quit this sport. Because I stopped believing in myself and my injury wasn’t responding. So being back in one of the best places in the world is a dream come true.”

The Spaniard had earlier said in an interview with Elle magazine that she would continue playing for as long as her chronic injury allowed her to.

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Paula Badosa will face the winner of the match between Coco Gauff and Emma Navarro in the quarterfinals of the 2024 US Open

Paula Badosa (Image Source: Getty)

Paula Badosa will face the winner of the fourth-round match between 13th seed Emma Navarro and third seed and defending champion Coco Gauff. The Americans have faced each other twice with both of them winning a match each.

While Gauff has defeated Varvara Gracheva, Tatjana Maria, and 27th seed Elina Svitolina at the US Open so far, Navarro has ousted Anna Blinkova, Arantxa Rus, and 19th seed Marta Kostyuk in her opening three rounds. Navarro will be looking to make it into the quarterfinals at Flushing Meadows for the first time in her career.

Paula Badosa boasts a 3-2 head-to-head lead against Gauff and a 1-0 lead against Navarro. They are in the bottom half of the draw which also features last year's runner-up and second seed Aryna Sabalenka, Olympic gold medalist Zheng Qinwen, silver medalist Donna Vekic, and 33rd seed Elise Mertens.