"Coming back from injury, sometimes you feel a little alone" - Paula Badosa delighted to return to the court surrounded by her compatriots amid ongoing injury concerns

Paula Badosa's career has been plagued by continuous injury problems. The latest of which saw her miss out on the US Open and much of the North American hardcourt swing. However, she is set to return to action at the Billie Jean King (BJK) Cup Finals in China.

The former world number two has made a positive return to the game after missing the majority of 2023 through a variety of injury setbacks and concerns. The Spaniard made a return to action in 2024, playing through numerous problems which have comeback to bite her, specifically trouble with her lower back.

She achieved her best Grand Slam run at the Australian Open at the start of the year, reaching the semi-finals before being beaten by world number one Aryna Sabalenka in straight sets. Badosa would then be forced to retire from the Charleston Open due to a lower back injury appearing again after first introducing itself in mid-2023. This issue appeared at the Berlin Open in her first round match against Xinyu Wang. After losing seven of the opening eight games, she was forced to retire due to the recurring issue in her back.

After losing in the first round at Wimbledon against home-favourte Katie Boulter, she was then forced to pull out of the Washington Open due to a tear in her psoas muscle. She was then forced to sit out the US Open among other big events, including the Canadian and Cincinnati Open, citing the same back issues she has been managing for sometime. Now, she looks to be back and prepared to step on the court again, hoping that those previous woes would have left her for good.

Spain will face Ukraine in their opening BJK Cup Finals match, facing them in the quarter-finals. It is a huge positive that Badosa has been able to traverse to Shenzhen to represent her country, and she also sees it as the perfect scenario to step back on the court, revealing that sometimes you would 'feel a little alone'.

“It helps to come and play as a team. Coming back from injury, sometimes you feel a little alone, you have ups and downs," she said to the EFE news agency. "Having these people by your side, your people around you, always helps, it motivates me.”

"It’s been a tough couple of months, although of course, I feel a little better every day,” she said.“It’s never easy coming back from an injury, but I feel great with my teammates. I think in this type of competition, it’s very important to have this good atmosphere, this good team spirit. Now I’m starting over, I’m coming back, but I know the season is also ending soon. I’m trying to feel as good as possible, although honestly, my goal is to look toward 2026.”

The Spanish team has previously won the cup five times, in 1991, 1993, 1994, 1995, and 1998. They last failed to qualify for the finals back in 2022, with them falling short last year to Poland. They have romped their way to the finals this year, beating Brazil and Czechia to advance to this stage.

Badosa will be joined by Jessica Bouzas Maneiro, Cristina Bucsa, Leyre Romero Gormaz, and Aliona Bolsova. The team captain is former world number six Carla Suarez Navarro. If they overcome Ukraine in their quarter-final, their next opponents will come in the form as either the host nation China, or last year's winners Italy.

On the other side of the draw, Kazakhstan clash with the USA, whilst Great Britain face off against Japan. The tournament will be played between 16th-21st September.