Sofia Araújo Reaches Another Final as Paulita and Ariana Make History
Sofia Araújo and Marta Ortega have reached their second final in three tournaments, showcasing their strong performance. However, the big news from the P2 tournament in Finland is the historic 33rd title secured by Paula Josémaria and Ari Sanchez. The Spanish duo has become the most successful female pair in international competitions, surpassing the previous record of 32 titles held by the Alayeto sisters, Mapi and Majo.
In a tournament marked by the absence of top pairs Gemma Triay/Claudia Fernandez and Bea Gonzalez/Delfi Brea, it was no surprise that the final in Finland saw the competition’s top two seeded pairs face off. Unlike the Genoa final, where Sofia Araújo and Marta Ortega triumphed over Paula and Ari, this final was entirely dominated by the world number one duo, who displayed exceptional padel skills and left no room for the Portuguese-Spanish pair to contest the outcome. This marks the sixth title of the year for the world’s top-ranked players, further solidifying their lead in the FIP rankings.
Victory in debut for Lebron and Di Nenno
The men’s draw in Finland was notable not only for the absence of the world’s top two pairs (Coello/Tapia and Galan/Chingotto) but also for the debut of several new pairings. Among these, the main highlight was the debut of Juan Lebron and Martin Di Nenno as well as Paquito Navarro and Pablo Cardona.
Paquito and Cardona had a strong tournament run but were unable to overcome the more experienced Coki Nieto and Jon Sanz in the semifinals, who secured a hard-fought victory in three sets. Juan Lebron and Martin Di Nenno had the dream debut they hoped for, winning the title with a commanding straight-sets victory over Coki Nieto and Jon Sanz in the final. Lebron’s outstanding performance, featuring 26 winners and only 6 unforced errors, earned him the MVP of the match.
The Premier Padel circuit will now take a break for about four weeks, resuming on August 31 with the P1 event in Comunidad de Madrid.
