Stefanos Tsitsipas says Paula Badosa’s dad is his biggest fan (Image: Getty)
Stefanos Tsitsipas has revealed that his biggest fan is none other than Josep Badosa, the father of his girlfriend, WTA star Paula Badosa. Tsitsipas has been in a relationship with the world No. 9 for almost two years, and the tennis stars have often been spotted cheering each other on in matches.
Tsitsipas own dad, Apostolos, also spent years coaching him and watching every match from the box. But it’s Badosa’s father who has been ride-or-die for the Greek star, as Tsitsipas shared a surprising anecdote about Josep’s level of dedication.
When asked who he believed his biggest supporter was, the world No. 16 gave an unexpected answer. “Josep Badosa, Paula’s father,” Tsitsipas told the ATP.
“He keeps wearing ‘Team Tsitsipas’ [on his shirt] just everywhere he goes! There’s this one t-shirt that I gave him, and he just wears it everywhere.”
Badosa’s father has plenty to cheer about. Tsitsipas picked up his first ATP 500 title in Dubai earlier this year, while his own daughter has also been on an impressive run since last summer.
After spending a year battling a chronic back injury, the Spaniard turned things around when she won the title in Washington last August, and she’s been climbing ever since.
Paula Badosa and Stefanos Tsitsipas have been dating for almost two years (Image: Getty)
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Badosa has also enjoyed deep runs at the US Open, Australian Open and some WTA 1000 events. However, she has been sidelined with another back injury for the last few weeks.
The 27-year-old faced a fresh setback in the Merida quarter-final in early March and skipped Indian Wells. She returned in Miami and won two matches before pulling out injured, and has since announced that she will be taking a break to recover.
While Badosa remains sidelined, Tsitsipas is attempting to fly the flag for the couple. He reached the quarter-final at last week’s Monte-Carlo Masters, where he was the defending champion, and suffered his second defeat at the tournament since 2019.
The world No. 16 is now back in action at this week’s ATP 500 event in Barcelona, where he is through to the last eight. Tsitsipas has been a runner-up in Barcelona three times and will hope to finally get his hands on the trophy.
“Every year is difficult, I don’t think reaching any of those finals has been easy, this is an ATP 500 and there are very good players,” he said earlier this week.
“I want the trophy, hopefully I can show a great version of tennis and achieve something big, but I want to take it day by day.”
While Josep Badosa has been a great source of motivation for Tsitsipas, the Greek player could soon have a new supporter in his camp – Goran Ivanisevic. The former Wimbledon champion is reportedly set to join Tsitsipas’ team after the French Open.
But Tsitsipas has refused to confirm or deny the reports. “I’ll make an official announcement soon, but I can’t say anything yet,” he said in Barcelona.
