The third edition of the Betclic Bordeaux Premier Padel P2 got underway this Tuesday at the iconic Patinoire de Mériadeck, a multi-purpose venue best known for hosting the games of the city’s renowned local ice hockey team.

The day began with the first two matches of the men’s main draw — round of 32 action — and produced victories for Álex Ruiz and Juanlu Esbri (6-4, 6-2 against Javi García and José Jiménez) and Aimar Goñi and Edu Alonso (6-3, 3-6, 6-3 over Sanyo Gutiérrez and Maxi Sánchez Blasco).

Both Spanish pairings made a strong start and are now awaiting their opponents in the round of 16, where they could face two of the tournament’s eight seeded teams. Ruiz and Esbri will take on the winners of the clash between Jon Sanz and Coki Nieto (#5) and Diestro-Piotto. Meanwhile, Goñi and Alonso will face the pair emerging from the match between Lucas Campagnolo and Momo González (#8) and the Italian duo of Abbate-Montiel.

FOCUS ON THE FRENCH PLAYERS AND THE REMAINING SEEDED PAIRS

The round of 32 will be completed in full on Wednesday from 10:00am local time. With four men’s seeded pairs still waiting to make their debut on Thursday, along with the top eight women’s teams — who enter the competition directly in the round of 16 — much of the attention will be on the local representatives.

That includes France’s top-ranked player Alix Collombon, who alongside Ksenia Sharifova will take on Lucía Sainz and Jana Montes. Local player Léa Godallier will also begin her campaign, teaming up with Argentina’s Daiara Valenzuela for a demanding opening match against Bea Caldera and Carmen Goenaga.

In the men’s draw, Dylan Guichard and Belgium’s Clément Geens will face Bautista-Jofre, while French pair Yoan Boronad and Timéo Fonteny will be looking to progress against Chozas-Libaak.

Another major attraction on Wednesday will be the debut of the remaining men’s seeded pairs. Alongside Sanz-Nieto (#5) and Campagnolo-González (#8), Paquito Navarro and Martín Di Nenno (#6) will also take to the court against García-Lijó, while Javi Leal and Fran Guerrero (#7) will begin their campaign against the newly formed pairing of Tolito Aguirre and Rama Valenzuela in what is expected to be one of the most entertaining clashes of the day.