Paula Badosa has made a bold call ahead of the coming week after accepting a wildcard for the Stuttgart Open.
Badosa recently dropped outside the top 100 following injury struggles and relatively poor form.
Despite her ranking drop, Badosa has received wildcards for recent tournaments in Charleston and Linz, as a former world number two.
Badosa has received a wildcard for her next tournament at the Stuttgart Open, but she was supposed to be competing elsewhere.
Paula Badosa chooses to play in Stuttgart Open despite receiving wildcard for Rouen
Badosa had initially been announced as a wildcard for the upcoming WTA 250 tournament in Rouen, alongside Sloane Stephens and two French players.
The Spaniard actually no longer required the wildcard after withdrawals meant that she was able to get into the main draw directly.
However, Badosa is not competing in Rouen at all anymore, and she has instead decided to take a wildcard for the Stuttgart Open.
The Stuttgart Open is a WTA 500 level tournament and therefore offers more ranking points and prize money than in Rouen.
Badosa will play Eva Lys in her first round match in Stuttgart, having actually practiced with the German ahead of the tournament getting underway.
Paula Badosa is at risk of having to play qualifying at the French Open
While Badosa has decided to take a wildcard for a higher calibre of tournament, it will actually not have any bearing on her French Open chances.
The ranking cut-off for the French Open entry list is Monday, April 13, and Badosa is now at risk of having to play qualifying for the clay court major.
Badosa’s first round loss in the Linz Open to Austrian teenager Lilli Tagger means that she will fall to world number 106 in the live rankings.
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Grand Slams accept 104 direct entry places, and with some players expected to use protected rankings, it means that Badosa is likely to miss out on direct entry into the main draw.
Badosa was ranked as high as world number nine last year, and she now faces playing Grand Slam qualifying for the first time since the 2019 US Open.
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