Paula Badosa & Simona Halep partner for special practice session in off-season ahead of 2025 campaigns
Paula Badosa and Simona Halep recently partnered together for a special off-season practice session in preparation for their 2025 tennis season campaigns. Badosa and Halep have faced each other three times on the WTA Tour, with the former World No. 1 emerging victorious in two out of the three matches.
Badosa began her 2024 season at the Adelaide International where she fell in the first round. The Spaniard managed to secure one title this year, the 2024 Citi Open, where she triumphed over Marie Bouzkova in the final. She also had semifinal runs at the Cincinnati Open and the China Open.
Badosa's other notable performances include reaching the quarterfinals at the Bad Homburg Open where she lost to eventual champion Diana Shnaider and the last eight at the US Open where she was defeated by Emma Navarro.
Meanwhile, Halep made a return to the court this year after serving a reduced four-year ban for violating the International Tennis Integrity Agency's anti-doping regulations. The Romanian made her comeback at the 2024 Miami Open where she faced Badosa in the first round and suffered a close defeat with a score of 6-1, 4-6, 3-6.
Most recently, Paula Badosa and Simona Halep joined forces for a practice session in anticipation of the upcoming 2025 season. The former World No. 2 took to social media to post a photo of the two of them on the tennis court.
“Great practice with this champ @simonahalep thank you," Badosa captioned her Instagram story.
The Romanian also shared a picture of them and wrote:
“Always a pleasure 😌 Thanks for the great practice @paulabadosa"
“ 🔝 🔝 🔝 ," Badosa added.
Paula Badosa: “Simona Halep's a big player, I respect her so much"
![Paula Badosa & Simona Halep at the 2022 Madrid Open [Source: Getty]](https://staticg.sportskeeda.com/editor/2024/12/32d72-17334070690582-1920.jpg)
Earlier this year, during a press conference, Paula Badosa expressed her admiration for Simona Halep. She said that the former World No. 1 is a "big player" for whom she has a lot of respect.
“Even if Simona is 10 years without competing, she's still Simona. She's a big player. She's won so many titles. I respect her so much," Badosa said.
Badosa stated that players of Halep's caliber, who are "great champions," will inevitably reclaim their positions at the top of the world rankings.
“I think she's going to be back on the top very soon. These kind of players, you can never doubt about them because they've been great champions," she added.
Paula Badosa concluded her 2024 season by representing Spain in the first round of the 2024 Billie Jean King Cup Finals against Poland. Meanwhile, Simona Halep made her last appearance at the 2024 Hong Kong Open, where she received a wildcard entry to the main draw but was defeated by Yuan Yue in the opening round.