Paula Badosa reaching out to Stefanos Tsitsipas in the crowd. (Image: Eurosport.)
asked the crowd to give a round of applause for her boyfriend , who is “not having the best moment” in Melbourne.
Tsitsipas, a runner-up in 2023, on the second day of the tournament.
The 11th seed went down 7-5, 6-3, 2-6, 6-4 to his 20-year-old opponent, having gone out in the first round of last year’s and the second round of .
Badosa, meanwhile, breezed into the third round Down Under as she defeated Talia Gibson 6-1, 6-0 in just 48 minutes.
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She was pleased that Tsitsipas, watching on, did not have to sit through another lengthy battle – which has become customary for the Spanish star.
“I think he always complains that I do long matches so today I was really proud of myself that he didn’t have to stay much,” Badosa said. “But it’s amazing to have him by my side, it’s very inspiring and especially a player that is so good at what he does.
“He gives me many advice and support, vice-versa, but it’s great to have him by my side.”
She then asked the Margaret Court Arena crowd to raise their voices for Tsitsipas, telling them: “Guys I want a round of applause for him because he’s not having the best moment, but he will come back.”
Badosa will next face Ukrainian Marta Kosyuk on Show Court Arena for a place in the fourth round.
Paula Badosa had a special message for her boyfriend Stefanos Tsitsipas. (Image: Getty)
Tsitsipas, meanwhile, will have another watching brief after blaming “karma” for his early exit. Having pulled out of doubles with his brother Petros on the eve of the tournament, the Greek star felt that alternate forces were at play.
“It’s quite ironic. My whole [idea] was to try to go deep into the . I knew the first thing I had to consider was not playing doubles,” Tsitsipas said. “I guess karma hit me.
“I was not able to deliver or play the way I was hoping to at this year’s event. The whole purpose was just to save up on some energy and be fresher hopefully in the deeper draw of the tournament.”
Paula Badosa spoke about Stefanos Tsitsipas after reaching Australian Open R3:“Guys I want a round of applause for him because he’s not having the best moment, but he will come back.” ❤️
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter)
Though he has more free time to watch his girlfriend play, Tsitsipas admitted that “it just sucks” to stand by and wait after losing two of his first three matches in 2025.
“The most frustrating part about losing in the first round of a Grand Slam is that you have way too much time to recover, and I would rather have the other way around where I don’t have enough time to recover,” he added.
“Honestly that’s much, much better in terms of problem-solving. It just sucks in a way that I’ll be around, hanging around, for quite a while now before my next tournament comes in.”