Paula Badosa reacts to Emma Raducanu's selfie-filled UK photodump ahead of Australian Open departure
Paula Badosa reacted to Emma Raducanu's UK photo dump before the pair begins their 2025 season in the coming weeks. Raducanu will begin her season in Auckland while the Spaniard is currently playing an exhibition event in Abu Dhabi.
Raducanu took to Instagram to share a carousel of images filled with selfies from her stay in London. She captioned the post:
"[Great Britain flag]👋 in a bitttt —>>🪇🌞🗺️⛱️🌏"
Badosa reacted to the post with several heart-eyes emojis.
The British and Spanish duo have grown close this season, forming a strong friendship. Their bond has extended beyond the court, highlighted by meaningful off-court interactions and the exchange of special birthday gifts.
Emma Raducanu and Paula Badosa forged a close bond with heartfelt birthday wishes
Emma Raducanu and Paula Badosa forged a close friendship during their time together in Washington DC for the Citi Open. They were practice partners at the event but also took their partnership off the court.
"We went for lunch, for breakfast. We spoke a lot about how tough it is to deal with all these expectations - especially in her case. I had a little bit of the same in my career. Especially when you feel that anything you do, it's going to be crazy on social media. In her case, it's like that. I think she's dealing with it pretty well now," Badosa said (via WTA Tour).
At the WTA 500 event, Badosa and Raducanu faced off in the quarterfinal and the Spaniard came out on top. Further, the 27-year-old went on to win the tournament, her first title in two years.
Later, the pair exchanged heartfelt birthday wishes in November. On Raducanu's 22nd birthday, on November 13, Badosa took to Instagram to share an image of them hugging at the net during their encounter at the Citi Open. She captioned the image:
"Happy bday Emmita."
Notably, the pair have given each other nicknames. Emma is dubbed Emmita while Paula is Paulita.
Days later, on November 15, Raducanu also wished Badosa on her 27th birthday. Moreover, the Spaniard revealed that Raducanu gave her a handwritten note with a thoughtful gift. Badosa shared the image of the gifts and wrote:
"The sweetest @emmaraducanu"
Raducanu is set to begin her 2025 season at the ASB Classic in Auckland. Meanwhile, Badosa is currently playing at the World Tennis League exhibition event in Abu Dhabi.