A wave of emotions swept through the Movistar Arena to bring an unforgettable week to an end with the Comunidad de Madrid Premier Padel P1 by Oysho finals. No one wanted to miss one of the most special days of the season, with almost 14.000 spectators (more than 55.000 across the week) watching the best padel in the world, including football stars such as Raúl González Blanco, Eden Hazard and Alex Baena, World Champion and Atletico Madrid player.
The Spanish capital provided the stage for Gemma Triay to improve her legendary status. The backhand player from Menorca equalled the 58 titles of Alejandra Salazar, who received an emotional tribute from her home crowd between the two finals. Meanwhile, Ale Galán - Fede Chingotto showed that they are the most in-form pair on tour after the summer break, claiming their seventh title of the season.
If one thing has become a trademark of the games between Triay - Delfi Brea and Paula Josemaría - Bea González it's how close they are, and at Madrid was no different. Following a succession of breaks at the start of the match, the opening set went the way of the second seeds in a tie-break, where they fought back from 5-2 down after taking advantage of several unforced errors from Triay.
However, the Spanish backhand and her partner showed their ability to raise their level when adversity emerge. With Seba Nerone providing support from the bench, they turned the final around, taking control at the crucial moments to secure back-to-back 6-3 sets, allowing them to lift their sixth title of the season and close the gap in the head-to-head against Perlamita (3-5).
The result saw her reach 200 wins on the tour and equal Salazar’s tally of 58 titles, making her the active player with the most titles alongside the Madrid native. The two shared an emotional embrace just minutes later.
Following the women’s final, Salazar received a heartfelt tribute to celebrate her outstanding career on the centre court of the Movistar Arena surrounded by her family, team and padel stars including Carolina Navarro, head coach of the Spanish women’s national team, Claudia Fernández and Triay herself, with whom she held the world No. 1 ranking in 2021 and 2022.
The crowd bid farewell to their most decorated player, accompanied by Coldplay and a live performance from Jaime Terrón and Julia Medina. Salazar also received a special portrait from artist Esther Moya González.
“I’m incredibly proud and happy to see how our sport has grown thanks to so many people. I’ve enjoyed so much this journey. I’ve always wanted to be a girl who simply enjoyed playing, who wanted to find a way to win, but also to have fun and walk away satisfied from every match. I think I’ve achieved that, and that I’ve played my small part in getting us to where we are today, helping padel reach the status it deserves. There are still many tournaments ahead, but I know I’ll be here for all of you and for whatever padel needs,” said Salazar.
The number two seed ended the dream run of underdogs Coki Nieto - Mike Yanguas (#5), the pair who knocked out Agustín Tapia and Arturo Coello earlier in the tournament. Jorge Martínez’s demonstrated their status as favorites on paper, winning 6-4, 5-7, 6-4 to claim their seventh title of the season and close the gap on the world No. 1s, who will be looking for revenge next week at the Alpine Paris Major Premier Padel.
For the first time, Madrid witnessed a final between two local players, Galán and Nieto. It was the ‘Alien’ who emerged victorious, having already tasted success on home soil after winning the 2022 edition alongside Juan Lebrón.
One of the most thrilling finals of the season lasted two hours and 43 minutes. In the opening set, Chingalán tipped the balance in their favor by winning a Star Point at 3-3, moving them one step closer to the title. However, their opponents produced an unexpected response when they were serving for the match at 5-4 in the second set. Yanguas and Nieto then won three games in a row to extend the final to a deciding set.
With both duos pushed to their physical and mental limits, it was the No. 2 seeds who managed to make the difference. With the scoreboard level at 4-4, they stepped up and finally converted one of the nine break points they created throughout the set. They then held serve in the following game to finish an epic encounter and head to Roland Garros in a few days full of confidence.
