At the Pala Padel Nola, Tino Libaak and Alex Chozas needed two hours and thirty minutes of high intensity to secure their second consecutive title. Fresh from their triumph in Aguascalientes, the Argentine duo defeated Sanyo Gutierrez and Victor Ruiz 7-6 6-4. The opening set was dramatic, with Gutierrez and Ruiz recovering from 2-6 down in the tie-break before Libaak and Chozas closed it 12-10. The second set followed a similar pattern, with the decisive break arriving in the fifth game.
Emotions and reflections
The victory carried particular meaning for Libaak, who admitted: “Playing a final is something special, and facing Sanyo is always a pleasure. He has been one of my references since I was a child. It is the first time in my life I have managed to beat him, and I am very happy,” he said. Chozas also shared his thoughts: “It was spectacular. We must value the way we played, the team we are building and the sensations that are improving step by step. We need to get used to playing these kinds of matches, gain experience in finals, and manage the tension and emotions that can sometimes work against us. We are working very hard on this. Our opponents also had a great tournament, so congratulations to them, and also to Tino, because he carried the team. I am really happy,” he commented.
The women’s triumph
Raquel Eugenio and Martina Fassio confirmed their potential with a commanding 6-1 6-2 win over Araceli Martinez and Lucia Sainz. At just 18 and 21 years old, the pair resumed their project at the start of April and immediately found success, showing maturity and confidence on court. Their reunion has already delivered three titles this season, underlining their ambition to reach the highest level.
Confidence and clarity
Eugenio explained her mindset: “It is certainly not natural, there is a lot of work behind it. I am still young, so it is very demanding to enter the professional circuit. I have worked a lot with the whole team, and I am very happy with the attitude, the physical condition, everything. We prepared very well here, we had great confidence and it showed. We are very happy. And of course, congratulations to our opponents as well,” she said. Fassio added: “We entered the court with clear ideas, we worked a lot on how we wanted to play. We managed to put everything into practice and it worked very well. Congratulations to our opponents for reaching the final. We are very happy,” she commented. The FIP Silver in Nola concluded a week of high-level padel, featuring 18 players from the world’s top 50 and former world number ones. The victories of Libaak–Chozas and Fassio–Eugenio highlighted the rise of new talents and the strength of established champions, making the Italian event one of the most memorable stops on the CUPRA FIP Tour.
