By Kevin Rademeyer, Sport Journalist.
Photo Credit: Premier Padel.
LIVE FROM THE SUNBET ARENA: PRETORIA — The first Premier Padel P1 tournament ever staged on South African soil deserved a memorable finish. It got one.
After seven days of world class padel, packed grandstands and an atmosphere that surprised even the sport’s biggest names, Sunday’s men’s final produced everything the tournament had promised.
It was a contest of momentum, nerve, leadership and resilience. It ebbed and flowed for more than two hours before Alejandro Galán and Federico Chingotto finally emerged as Pretoria’s first champions, surviving one last surge from the inspired Javi Leal and Fran Guerrero to claim the title in a dramatic deciding-set tie break.
It was fitting that the championship should end this way.
This had been a tournament that consistently refused to follow the expected script. The world’s No.1 pair had fallen in the semi-finals, ending a remarkable run of 27 consecutive Premier Padel match victories. This also meant that their 5-tournament winning steak was over.
The seventh seeds and underdogs, Javi Leal and Fran Guerrero, had become national favourites. South African crowds had embraced the sport with a passion few outsiders anticipated. By the time the finalists walked onto Centre Court, the sold out SunBet Arena expected something special.
They were not disappointed.
Galán and Chingotto began as champions often do, calm while those around them burned with emotion. Their experience quickly settled what had been an energetic opening, and after just 21 minutes they had claimed the opening set 6-2. It was efficient rather than spectacular, the second seeds controlling the rallies and forcing Leal and Guerrero into mistakes before they could ignite either themselves or the crowd.
But this partnership has spent the entire week proving it refuses to disappear quietly.
Leal, whose wholehearted style has made him one of Pretoria’s favourite players, began dragging both himself and the crowd into the contest. Every desperate retrieval, every full length dive and every emotional celebration lifted the noise to another level. Guerrero matched his intensity, and suddenly the favourites found themselves under pressure.
The second set became the contest everyone had hoped for.
Leal earned a set point at 6-5, only for Chingotto to produce a fierce overhead that cannoned into Guerrero before the underdogs could celebrate. It was only a temporary reprieve. Moments later another opportunity arrived, and this time Chingotto mistimed an overhead smash badly, sending the ball sailing into the upper reaches of the arena.
Forty-five minutes after it had begun, Leal and Guerrero had taken the second set 7-5.
The statistics told part of the story. Galán and Chingotto failed to create a single break point throughout the set and committed 13 unforced errors, compared with 10 from their opponents. For the first time all afternoon, belief visibly shifted across the arena.
The decision carried all the tension of a heavyweight title fight.
Leal and Guerrero attacked from the outset, playing with the same fearless freedom that had carried them past Juan Lebrón and Leo Augsburger before toppling world No.1s Arturo Coello and Agustín Tapia in one of the biggest upsets of the Premier Padel season.
As pressure mounted, Chingotto briefly appeared to lose confidence. Errors crept into his game, his normally animated personality became noticeably subdued, and responsibility increasingly shifted towards Galán.
It was here that the Spaniard’s class extended beyond his racket.
A three time world No.1 and one of the sport’s most accomplished competitors, Galán recognised the moment immediately. He became more vocal, took greater ownership of rallies and constantly encouraged his partner between points.
At a time when criticism has followed Chingotto after several recent tournaments, Galán’s leadership proved every bit as valuable as his shot making.
It gradually steadied the ship.
The second seeds edged ahead 5-4, in the third set, and stood one service game away from the title.
Then came yet another twist.
Galán, so composed throughout the afternoon, suddenly looked tense. The pressure of closing out another championship became evident as a handful of rare mistakes crept into his game.
At 30-15, victory seemed within touching distance before Leal and Guerrero produced another surge. They needed only a single break point to level the match, capitalising on an unforced error to drag the final into a deciding tie break.
Few inside the arena were willing to predict the outcome anymore.
The underdogs struck first, racing into a 3-1 advantage and appearing ready to complete another extraordinary comeback.
This time, however, experience prevailed.
Chingotto rediscovered his rhythm when it mattered most, cutting out the errors that had threatened to overwhelm his afternoon. His consistency forced Leal into lower percentage shots while Galán resumed dictating play from the back of the court.
Even then, the drama refused to subside.
At 6-5, Galán held championship point, only for Guerrero to produce brilliant net play to keep the dream alive. Moments later Leal earned a championship point of his own at 7-6, but Galán responded once again with the calm that has defined his career.
Another opportunity arrived for the favourites at 8-7, only for Galán to miss what looked a routine overhead. It mattered little. Three seconds later Guerrero overhit a simple shot, ending one of the finest finals Premier Padel has produced this season after two hours and two breathless minutes.
The numbers reflected how little separated the teams.
One number however mattered the most. Galán and Chingotto converted all three of their break point opportunities, while Leal and Guerrero managed just two from five.
The runners up produced more smashes, 49 to 39, but also committed more unforced errors, 36 compared to the champions’ 33. Galán finished with 70 winners to Leal and Guerrero’s combined 61, a measure of his influence whenever the biggest moments arrived.
Yet statistics alone cannot explain why the champions prevailed.
Championships are rarely won by those who play perfectly. More often they belong to those who remain calm when perfection disappears. Galán and Chingotto survived moments when confidence wavered, momentum shifted and the crowd threatened to carry the underdogs over the line. They absorbed every blow before landing the final one themselves.
Pretoria, meanwhile, can reflect on a remarkable debut.
From sold out crowds to international acclaim, the tournament exceeded expectations both on and off the court. South Africa’s players were given a valuable reminder of the technical standards and professionalism required to compete with the world’s elite, while local supporters embraced the sport with an enthusiasm that has almost certainly secured the event’s future.
Whether Pretoria retains its P1 status next year or returns as a P2 remains to be confirmed. Based on what unfolded over the past week and the geopolitical issues in the middle east, however the case for remaining among Premier Padel’s flagship events has become a compelling one.
As the final point was played, there was barely time for celebration. Players hurried from Centre Court to catch flights bound for London and the next stop on the global tour.
They left behind a tournament that had announced South Africa as a genuine destination on the world padel calendar.
For everyone fortunate enough to witness it, it was proof that world class sport, played before a passionate crowd, can create memories that linger long after the final ball has been struck.