It seems Stefanos Tsitsipas didn’t get the message that he should take things slow and easy in a new relationship.
Just a few months after starting his romance with tennis player Paula Badosa, the Greek, world number 5, who beat Andy Murray on Friday, has declared that the beautiful Spaniard is his “soul mate”. Subtle, Stefanos.
“I feel happy and content,” Tsitsipas told Eurosport recently after they went public with their relationship following weeks of online hints and locker room rumours.
A kiss on the cheek in a hotel room and her combing his hair were also some kind of clue.
“I’ve never felt that kind of connection with anyone before. I don’t want to sound embarrassed or anything because that’s the reality and that’s what I’m dealing with,” he added.
Badosa has been dating world number 5 Tsitsipas in recent months and they share an Instagram account.
“I feel very happy and blessed that this happened at this stage of my life. Of course there is attraction, but sometimes it is also just an interaction of the soul and the fact of falling in love with your mind. It is very rare that these things happen.”
Paula Badosa, a 25-year-old tennis player born in New York and representing Spain, reached a peak of world number 2 and is currently ranked 35. Her best performance in a Grand Slam was at last year’s French Open, when she reached the quarter-finals.
Stefanos Tsitsipas, a 24-year-old Greek, has risen to third in the rankings and is the fifth seed at Wimbledon. He has been runner-up twice, losing both finals to Novak Djokovic: at the 2021 French Open and at the Australian Open this year.
The two players had planned to play together in mixed doubles at Wimbledon, but Badosa’s back injury forced her to withdraw from her second-round singles match.
During the week, Badosa, who has struggled with anxiety, shared rare moments, speaking openly about her passionate dreams, which made her go viral. “I got injured in Australia. I watched their match, the final. I was jet-lagged because I was in Spain. I decided to watch it,” she said.
Tsitsipas beat Andy Murray on Friday while Badosa retired on Friday due to a back problem.
‘Surprising, because I never dream about tennis players, but I dreamed about him that night, that we both won the Australian Open.
“So it was like we were living a very romantic moment, but I’m not going to explain it. I’ll leave it there. (Laughs)”
Like many modern couples, they’re eager to do everything together, and that extends to Instagram.
Their joint account, which already has 62,000 followers, is packed with fans.
“Best friends and soulmates. Nothing more, nothing less,” reads the account’s bio.
Do they tone down the subtitles? Think again.
“Your eyes stole all my words,” reads her most recent post, as they gaze into each other’s eyes.
“0 Grand Slams in one photo, but hey, love conquers all!” says another.
But not everyone is as excited about their relationship as the fan accounts that pop up every day to “spot” the two stars together.
There are pictures of the happy couple exercising together in a pool in Dubai on their Instagram.
Former tennis champion John McEnroe was shown pictures of the happy couple working out together in a pool in Dubai. The American, however, would have none of it.
“Training, is that what it is? Is that training, Clare?” she told presenter Clare Balding on the BBC.
When Tsitsipas was told during his on-court interview on Wednesday that Badosa had also advanced, he said that was news to him and congratulated her, later referring to her as “Paulita.”
Standing next to her father in the crowd, Badosa clasped her hands together in the shape of a heart.
“It’s nerves of a different kind,” Badosa said, describing what it’s like to cheer him on instead of playing his own games.
“Watching it from the outside, I might be a bit more nervous because I can’t control it. But I’m happy that he got the win, and it was a crazy match. I’m happy that we both got through the first round.”
It is also worth noting that Tsitsipas has few friends within tennis, as he himself acknowledged earlier this year.
Tsitsipas and his partner Badosa were also due to compete in mixed doubles for the first time.
Australian bad boy Nick Kyrgios hit out at the Greek earlier this year when he claimed “nobody” in the locker room liked him, and when asked why he is something of a lone wolf, Tsitsipas said: “I just feel like I don’t relate to a lot of them, in terms of how I approach life.”
But with Badosa he wants to connect on a deep, philosophical level. The two seem to have eyes for each other for now.
“It’s a very nice thing because we empathize a lot, we have very clear ideas, we are both very ambitious, but at the same time we share our personal lives and we share many things,” Badosa told Spanish outlet El Larguero in June.
‘We have a very solid and strong connection, so he shares with me his good and bad times, his experiences, just like I do with him, so we support each other and give each other a lot of strength.
“Other than that, we pushed each other to be better. I was recovering from my injury and he came here to help me every day in my worst and best moments. I think we brought a lot to each other.”
