"In women's sports, personal side is more focused than in men's" - Paula Badosa makes frustrations clear with gender bias in tennis

Paula Badosa recently expressed her views on the value of women's tennis compared to men's. The Spaniard recently competed at the Grass Court Championships in Berlin to prepare for the upcoming 2025 Wimbledon.

After a disappointing third-round exit at the French Open, the Spanish player kicked off her grass-court season in Berlin. She dominated American star Emma Navarro to reach the quarterfinal round at Steffi Graf Stadion. She squared off against eventual runner-up Wang Xinyu but was forced to retire between the match sue to an injury.

Shortly after this heartbreaking loss, Badosa sat for an interview with Elle magazine, where she opened up about her frustration with gender bias, stating that women's tennis is not as valued as men's tennis. Highlighting the point of the personal side being more focused on in women's sports, Badosa said:

"We've evolved quite a bit, but it can't be denied that in women's sports, the personal side is more focused than in men's, and topics are discussed that shouldn't even be touched upon."

The 27-year-old started her 2025 season by competing at the Brisbane International, where she witnessed an early exit in the first round. However, Badosa reached the semifinal round at the Australian Open to register her career's best major result.

Paula Badosa opened up about how her personal life is affected because of her celebrity status

Last month, Paula Badosa sat for a conversation with Eurosport, where she made her feelings known about how her personal life gets affected because of her being a renowned tennis player. She emphasized the point of being exposed to public judgment and said that, being an athlete, she doesn't know what she will be judged for, unlike actors.

"How exposed we are, how people constantly judge us. Maybe if you're an actress, you already know what you're exposing yourself to, but if you're an athlete, you really don't expect it. Being famous entails attending galas, events, meetings with sponsors, and fulfilling many commitments," Paula Badosa said.

She further spoke about how being in a relationship with Stefanos Tsitsipas amalgamates her personal and professional life. Calling it hard to manage, she added:

"Within the role of a tennis player, this is the part I'd like to erase. I feel like my professional and personal lives are completely intertwined, also because of the person I'm with, but sometimes it's hard to manage."

Paula Badosa has won four WTA Tour singles titles so far, including the 2021 Indian Wells, 2021 Serbia Open, 2022 Sydney International, and 2024 Citi Open. She also reached her career-best World No. 2 in the women's singles rankings in April 2022.