Paula Badosa explains biggest change on WTA Tour in recent years

Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images Paula Badosa has started to show some form again at the Charleston Open. After an emotional win over Kayla Day, Badosa followed it up with a straight-sets victory against Maria Sakkari. The results mark the first time since June 2025 that the Spanish star was able to win two matches in a row at a tournament.

Badosa, who has been ranked as high as world number three in the world, has pinpointed a major change on the WTA Tour in recent years, which could be a reason for her stumbling form. Paula Badosa points to increased physical demands of the WTA Tour Photo by William WEST / AFP via Getty Images Badosa has played through two different eras of the sport, and the current generation may be the most athletic yet. She’s noticed a significant rise in physicality among WTA players over the past five years.

“I feel a big difference, and I have talked a lot about it. One of the things I love most is watching and analysing tennis,” she said during her press conference at Charleston. “I have had a lot of time now, and I have seen a big difference from 2020 to 2023, let’s say.

Now in the last few years, I think the pace at which we were playing was a bit slower, although at the same time, I feel I had to keep evolving. “Most of us also work with statistics and analytics, so I ask. I want to know the pace of how I was playing a couple of years ago and now, and there are differences.