Former world no. 1 Davenport picks Badosa as next in line for a Grand Slam

Former world No. 1 Lindsay Davenport thinks Paula Badosa was the most improved player in 2021 and she thinks she will win a grand slam in 2022.

Badosa, 24, enjoyed a strong finish to the year as she captured her maiden Masters' title in October and then made her maiden WTA Finals appearance in November. She also broke into the top-10 for the first time in her career shortly after her Indian Wells victory.

Speaking about that, Davenport said:

“There’s a lot of players that improved a lot but, arguably, she was the most improved player last year. She was a great junior player. She’s talked about how tough that was for the first few years on the pro tour. But you see a player kind of come into their own, and you could see her as the year went on, you could just see how she behaved on the court, like, ‘Yeah, I belong here."

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The American is sure that she will win a grand slam in 2022:

“It’s really fascinating and fun to watch when you’re on the sidelines and you see a player really live up to their potential, and a lot of times it starts between the ears. These players are so good, but once they believe they can be there and once they believe in their game at those big moments, you get a result like you saw with Badosa at Indian Wells. I believe she’s going to win a major. I love her game. I love her work ethic. I love her behavior on court. She’s a fighter out there”.