Spanish tennis player Paula Badosa leaves the court in a wheelchair due to heat stroke
Badosa leaves the field in a wheelchair. (Photo by David Ramos / Getty Images)
Spanish tennis player Paula Badosa was forced to withdraw from the quarterfinals of the Olympic women’s singles against Czech Marquette Vondrosova on Wednesday.
Before the start of the second set, Badosa lost the first set 6-3 before requiring medical time on Court 4.
After a long focus, the Spaniards were unable to proceed and before leaving the court in a wheelchair, he announced his withdrawal from the match.
In a comment posted on the Tokyo 2020 site, Badosa said, “As you all have seen, I have suffered a heat stroke and I do not feel qualified to continue competing in the tournament.”
“With the pressure of competition, how special these days are, these are the things that happen in the game, I had to travel on that terrain today.
“It is a shame to end my participation in this way. Conditions have been demanding since day one. We have tried to adapt as best as possible, but today we are not opposed to the need for physical work,” Badosa said.
Marquette Vondrosova, who previously defeated Naomi Osaka, advanced to the women’s semifinals, where she will face Elena Svitolina of Ukraine.
Later, 23-year-old Badosa stepped down from his mixed doubles match with Pablo Carreno Pusta.
In the first round on Wednesday, the Spaniards faced the Polish pair of Iga Svyatek and Lucas Kubot.
In the draw, Padosa and Carreno Pusta were replaced by French Fiona Ferro and Pierre-Hughes Herbert, who lost 6-3, 7-6 to the Polish duo.
“I leave with a sense of pride for having provided everything for my country, for representing it in the most professional way I can,” Badosa said.
“I’m going to focus on healing, to be good, to give myself. The chance to return to an event like this,” he said.
Novak Djokovic and Daniel Medvedev are retiring after publicly criticizing the Tokyo 2020 tournament schedule.
Both players said it was better to start the match later in the evening as conditions had calmed down.
During his singles match against Fabio Fognini, Medvedev told the referee: “I am a fighter, I will finish the match, but I can die. If I die, will the IDF be responsible (sic)?”
