Only a few days ago they were proclaimed Absolute Spain Champions after overcoming in a vibrant final the Mapi Twins and Majo Sánchez Alayeto. From the Spanish Federation They offer us the interview they did shortly after conquering the title to the members of the Team NOX
Padel World Press .- They were two of the great names of one of the most important appointments of the national padel. With firm step, transmitting very good sensations from its debut, they did not take in confirming that they had arrived at the facilities of the Club of Pádel La Moraleja with the firm intention of fighting for the conquest of the title.
Since they joined their paths it was certain that this campaign was going to be a very competitive duo and they have not delayed in demonstrating it.
Do not miss this interesting interview conducted by the colleagues of the FEP, in which we can see how the tournament lived these two great players.
First of all, congratulations for the triumph. How have you lived this special week?
Lucia Sainz: Well, it's been a very special week for me. You can already imagine. Our Championship tactic was to plan each game's strategy, impose our game and stay true to that idea. And I think we have done very well, fighting every game and every point as we have been training. So a great week to remember and enjoy it.
Gemma Triay: The truth is that it has been very exciting and very special. As Lucia says, we have been consistent with our proposals and have given us very good results. In addition, we have adapted very well to the conditions of each match and I think that this point has also been very important in the final result we have achieved.
Your tournament has been almost perfect, yielding only eight games to the final. How would you summarize these three games until Sunday, in which you dominated from beginning to end?
LS: Well, I think that we played all the matches very concentrated, playing our game and without doubting the line to follow. We have maintained our bet on the game and it has given us very good results.
GT: I think the key to success has been the way we started to play, bringing homework from home. We attached great importance to tactically preparing each match since we were aware that our coach could not be with us on the bench in this tournament.
In the final you continued with your aggressive game, solid and with hardly any mistakes, however, the push of the twins made them take the second set. In the third, when the final was even, the unfortunate ball hit Mapi. Do you think it was a turning point? And how did you see that ending?
LS: Nobody is going to give and less in such an area and it could be a turning point both for them and for us, since the one who gives the blow is also affected by the shock. Luckily, the game was able to continue and we remained focused until the end. I think that helped the match fall for us. They are sets of the game that, due to bad luck, happen sometimes.
GS: We knew it was a very tough game and that we had to be at our highest level if we wanted to win. Throughout the meeting we were very focused on what we should do and ended up falling on our side. It is true, that the first two sets were more tight and opted for details. In the third, following the incident, we had to stop 5 minutes and it was a turning point for the 4 players. Whoever receives the ball, suffers it, but the one who gives it is also affected ... I at least stayed a bit in shock during a few games. Luckily, my partner pulled the car and helped me overcome that moment. Evidently the pitch was not intentional. After the game I talked to her about her health condition and she calmed me down when she told me that she had seen the doctor and that it had only been a scare.
What did you feel at the end of the match?
LS: Well, you can already imagine. Overflowing joy Many things go through your head ... You think about the whole team, the family that due to bad luck could not accompany us and all those people who always support us. And of course, it gives you energy to continue working and trust in the work we are doing.
GT: Uffff, so many things happen in your head. It is an immense joy and all you want is to celebrate and share it with the team and with the people who have always been there, following us and supporting us.
You both have been playing together for a short time. How have you been interpenetrating during this year? Lucia, how are you adapting to play on the right side of the track?
LS.: I am still adapting and I know that I have much to improve ... But the truth is that I am very comfortable and one of the keys is the security, support and confidence that Gemma is giving me.
GT: The truth is that Lucia has had a super fast adaptation to the right, but is that from the beginning she was completely sure that she would do it superbly. We only have 4 months training together and every day we have better feelings and the mechanisms work better and better.
In the WPT you have fallen in both tournaments in the quarter, also losing against the champions. Going from less to more, how did you live this beginning of the season?
LS.: We have lived with much desire to work and acclimatize as soon as possible because we are aware of the level from the first rounds. It is evident that the female paddle has grown during the last years, being much more aggressive and fast.
GS.: We are clear that we must work hard if we want to fight for the positions above. We really want and I think we have formed a very good team with which we are working very comfortable. That is something that is reflected in the track. To be honest, I think things go better the more you enjoy the track.
FEP: Both of you come from being very promising tennis players. How hard is the jump?
LS: Well, the jump is difficult only at the moment of deciding to leave the tennis ... And after so many years playing, you find it sad to leave it. But they are stages of life and in the end you assimilate them. Then, in my case, it was to define professionally dedicate myself to padel, since I started working in a company, and padel in recent years has grown a lot. If you do not dedicate 100%, it is very difficult, if not impossible, to be at the level of those above. In addition, I always liked tennis doubles more than the individual so the paddle suited my needs (laughs).
GT: I leave tennis because of an injury and I remember it as one of the most difficult decisions I made. After a year I missed the adrenaline of the competition and decided to try the paddle. From the beginning it was clear to me that I wanted to take it seriously and luckily I can dedicate myself professionally.
Lucia, how do you remember your time in the United States? In what ways did it help you to be the person you are now?
LS: I have the best memories of my time in Fresno (CA), United States. I would recommend it to everyone who had the opportunity to go. He trained me as a person, as an athlete and I could also study the races there. I made great friendships that I still maintain and I think it was a decisive stage in my life. You only need to see the smile that comes out when the United States is mentioned to me. They were 4 splendid years and a half.
Gemma, how have you digested such a vertiginous rise in the world of paddle, of starting to play the 21 years to be, in 3 seasons, as the 12 number in the world?
GT: Well, in a natural way. I already came from tennis, where there is a lot of pressure, a lot of travel, physically demanding and, of course, everything served me. The paddle I like more because everything you share with the partner and is more bearable. So I am delighted with the decision I made and I only try to enjoy the privilege of dedicating myself professionally to this sport that I am passionate about.
Do you perform some kind of ritual or do you have any mania on the track?
LS: I do not think either of us has a lot of hobbies. The only thing I always do before a game is change the grip and I am very neat, but I do not consider it a mania.
GT: Yes, as Lucia says, I think that none of us are crazy. I always do the same routine during warm-up but it's more a routine than a hobby.
What do you like to do when you are not playing padel, hobbies?
LS: The truth is that we have little free time between workouts, physical, and then afternoon classes and Catalan Circuit Championships on weekends, along with WPT trips ... But in free time I love hanging out with friends, to be with the family and to go to the cinema or to take something ... Things that of normal, we can not for lack of time.
GT: I, like Lucia, have little free time but the one I have left loves shopping. I enjoy it a lot and I'm very good at it (laughs).
Any anecdote in the time you have been playing together?
LS: The truth is that we have little time for something to have happened but surely in the next one there will be (laughs).
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