Tournament Breakdown with Gonsa Ubenia: Surprises, Highlights & Takeaways

We have a very special episode today. We're with the one and only Gonza Ubinia, my co commentator when we do the mangers and commentator for Premier Padel during the rest of the season. Gonza, how are you?

Good, good. Super happy to be here to see you again, Sandy. It's been not long, a couple of weeks.

It's always a pleasure, Gonza. And I mean, I think what we want to do with these is almost do a bit of a podcast to recap the last tournament. So last tournament was by your delete, you were commentating. I heard your dulcet tones on the commentary during the week and so it'd be great. I think almost the format of this is, you know, what was the tournament like, what was any kind of surprise results, what happens in the women's draw, then what happened in the men's drawer and then, you know, some takeaways. First thing I would say is that we obviously did Rome together, the commentary and it was hot in Rome, but it looked equally hot in Valladolid this week as well.

Yeah, I was about to say it was very similar to Rome in a way. Similar weather, similar conditions. The only difference I think that when we were in Rome and the matches were played in the night, you felt like the temperature was going down. The ball was not flying that fast here in Valladolid until 9:30 10:00pm it was still very hot, very quick. And I think that was the key to explain how and why Koio and Tapia won again, why Paula and Ari did the same. It was very quick, short points. We didn't see long rallies at all. But overall it was very fun and very entertaining.

Yeah, it's interesting, isn't it, that speed, it makes for a fast game. And I noticed in Rome, for me in Rome, I thought there were more unforced errors and short lobsters than we would often see. Right. And I think that the speed of the the court had something to do with that, particularly off the return. Was it similar this week? Did you see a lot of errors, a lot of unforced errors from the players?

Yeah, it was, it was very similar. And I remember Stupa mentioning it in the press conference after beating Jingalan for the first time. He said, sometimes you feel frustrated in these matches because you feel like you cannot do anything from defense. You're basically losing an under pressure every single time and you don't get any rhythm, any pace on the game. And it was like this the whole week. The team that was getting only one break was the one winning the set, it felt like that a break wins the set. Because it was so tough to defend. The team serving were pushing to the net a couple of volleys, and if you try to play a lob, you don't even. Chingotto was smashing the ball hard from behind the line this week. It was crazy.

I remember that from Rome. I was impressed with that. In Roman, did they do a similar thing where they had the matches earlier in the morning and then there was a gap in the middle of the day, and then like afternoon and evening.

Games again, they did during the whole week, but in the finals, the first one was at 10am and then the next one at 1pm so it was not a big gap.

That was the school chat.

It was hot. Yeah. But I think again, Sandy, that there wasn't a big difference between playing at 1pm than playing at 7. Here in Valladolid, it was always 34, 35 degrees. The temperature doesn't really, really go down. So, yeah, again, it was hot, quick, and not a big difference between the morning and the afternoon.

Now, we often discuss this in commentary a little bit, and it's a discussion we have with a lot of players, a lot of our members. Do you enjoy, like, the paddle when it's fast, like faster conditions like that, or do you prefer the slower conditions of, like a Buenos Aires, for example.

As a spectator, I think something in between. Something in between would be nice. The points were so short, you couldn't really see a lot of paddle. Here it was all about smash and going for the winner and even in defense, trying to go for a crazy angle because there's no way to win the net. But also, if you go to a tournament like Buenos Aires, it feels really slow and no one can win a point and it takes forever to find a moment to do something. So I think something in between would be nice. But it's a funny question because I remember a couple days ago going on Reddit and reading some comments and on socials, also on Instagram, on Twitter, people complaining about this kind of game style. It was too quick, too boring. You cannot see or learn anything from it. And people don't seem to like this kind of paddle. They seem to trend toward a slower kind of pace and the point. So, yeah, it's interesting.

I think it's. It's also how you watch it, right? Like what you're. If you're analyzing it for your own gameplay. And for me, I like Buenos Aires was too slow. It was almost like the points could just not get Finished and, and it seems like by no delirium Rome they were almost too easy to finish. It was you like you said, something in the middle is good where yes, you have to have a, a good setup, a really good setup to the point and then an aggressive finish in order to, to finish that point. And I think that makes for good watching as well. Right. You have some more exciting points. It does feel a little bit like pinball when it is on those fast conditions. I think Gonza, like what would be interesting is, is just going through the women's draw. Was there any, any surprises in, in there for you? It was great to see Martina Calvo and, and Zorro getting through to the semis. You know, that was a good result. Although they looked like they really struggled against Harry and Paola there. But what did you think of any, any particular ladies games that stood out?

No. Good to mention Martina Calvo because now she's going to play with Ale Salazar. So after making it to the semifinals in Buenos Aires and making it to the semifinals again now in Valladolid, she gets a call from a legend like Ale Salazar and she was, you know, hesitating. Should I say yes? Should I say no? Alisa Lazar is not the same as the one she was three, four years ago, but she said yes. So after Bordeaux they will play together. Aranza will come back to, to be said and that shows the good job she is actually doing. And then if you look at the top teams again, it feels like a circle where Bell Gonzalez and Claudio Fernandez always beat Delphi and Gemma. They did it in the semifinals. Even if Delphi had to retire, it was already a 75 and 31 for BEA and Claudia. But when Bea and Claudia face Ari and Paula, they lose. Now it's 7:1 to ADI and Paola on the head to head. And when Paola and Ari face Delphi and Gemma, they lose. It's like a circle between the top three teams where you feel like it's always happening the same thing. But spectacular tournament from Beya again in this condition. She is so much fun to watch. She has a smash. She plays like a man in a way, if we can explain it that.

Way, like you say, I think Beya particularly always plays quite well against Delphi. And whether that's a friendship thing or if that's a familiarity with the game, it's almost like they often get through there and then really struggle against like Ari and Paola. And it was, it was relatively close in, in the final, but it's almost like they just get the better of them. Whereas Gemma and Delphi, going into the final against Arian Paoli, you'd probably put your money with. With Alfie and Gemma, right. The way that combination has gone, of those two playing each other.

Exactly 100. I feel like in this tournament we needed something more from Claudia Fernandez. We all know that she is almost like a Swiss clock. She follows a plan. She goes A, B and C, A, B and C every single time. But in this tournament, for some moments she was disconnected. In the finals against Ariane Paula, she made too many on first airs. A lot with Valjada de Parez, a lot. And to beat these kind of teams, you need not only Bea to be doing Bea things, but also Claudia providing the safety net. She always offers. In this tournament, it wasn't the case.

I think for her in the fast conditions, it's difficult, isn't it? Like, her game is built around. Well, like you said, like the safety and the control of the speed. You know, she's very good coming forward, punching the volley. But her backcourt game is definitely built around using the lob, using Chiquita, like slowing down the speed. And in fast conditions, it's probably very difficult. Like they are. Her game becomes more offensive, but Claudia's game becomes almost more difficult to play that defensive way, I think probably right.

Yes, I agree 100%. And then about the winners, about Darien Paula. It has to be probably one of the best tournaments that I've seen from Paula Jose Maria. She was chosen as the MVP by the tournament, by the organization. She was lethal, playing very consistent. And also I think it was very emotional for Paulita Jose Maria. We all know that she lived in Valladolid for so many years. She lost three finals. It was the first time for Arian Paula to ever win in Valladolid after losing three finals. So it was emotional. Paula lived there for so many years. She studied in the university, she trained when she was early in the. In the professionalism, when she was training with Gustavo Prato. Then she moved to Alicante. But it's a very special city for Paula and I feel like she. She wanted it more than anyone else. And that's why also she played so well.

Well, it's impressive, isn't it, that I would say that their performance in Rome was not amazing, right? Like, they didn't have a. They didn't have a great performance in Rome. They did very well in Buenos Aires. She was obviously she was ill and she did spectacularly there. She came and I think they gave her an average performance in Rome. So it's nice to see, like the week or two after that she can, in almost the same conditions, she can raise that level again and, and get back in there. I think just before we talk about Lens, I want to talk. You mentioned it, Martina Calvo going with Alejandra Salazar. And I think that it's so interesting, isn't it, this idea of, like, youngsters coming up, pairing themselves with an older, experienced player. And, you know, we had in the men's, you had Tapia and Bella, but we had Gemma and Claudia the same, you know, last season. What kind of impact do you think that has for the younger player to.

Receive a call like Alex Alazar?

Yeah, I mean, you'd be happy with that.

It's tough, you know, because what do you do you stay with Aranso Soto, a player that call you when you were, I mean, no one, let's say, or not well known, and you make it to two semifinals and you feel very well signing on court. But then Alisa Lazar calls you, you know, and it's a legend. Probably Martina Calvo, when she was 5, 6, 7, even 10 years old, she was already watching Alis Salazar at her prime. So it's tough because you know that Alice Alazar now is not the Ale Salazar she was, but still she's a legend. So I think it was a very tough position for Martina Calvo here Sunday.

I think the way I look at it is that. And maybe it's almost like a little bit like a computer game, you know, when you've got like a character and you're. You're building, as you go through the levels, you're building this experience and, and that's what, like, Martina Calvo, I think needs to do. She's on a long journey. She's on a long paddle journey. And this is just a stop in the journey for her to take as much experience as she can. And someone. If she didn't go with Alejandro Salazar, she'll always look back at that and go, oh, just think what I could have. I could have learned. Not necessarily, oh, I'll become world number one with Alejandra Salazar. But, like, what can, what can I take from her, arguably one of the best female players of all time, into to the way I approach matches, the mental side of the game, the way I play, the way I compete, like, you know, the learnings there must be huge. And that would almost, you know, be the reason to choose it. Right?

Exactly. And you know that if things don't go well, you can call an answer back and probably answer will say yes. You know, knowing that, well, you'll have.

More options in the future as well.

Exactly. The exposure that Alexander Alejandra Salazar gives you is massive. Even though if you're not talking about the same Alis Salazar, probably they will not win championships. They will fight for semifinals or quarterfinals. But I agree with you, the learning the process behind it is important for Martina here.

Yeah. Okay. So looking at the men's side, Gonza, any major upsets? I mean, like, we. We often talk about Cardona and Ellsberger as being a. An exciting couple to watch. They narrowly lost to Jingaland and they. In the quarters, we obviously had the surprise upset of Stupa Lebron beating them in the semis then, you know, which, I mean, a LeBron Galan match is always, always a, you know, a favorite to watch. But were there any, any kind of results that stood out for you over the course of the week?

I mean, to have Javi Leal and Frank Guerrero in the semifinals again, going back to back, that shows something. And they did it by knocking down Mike Yangwas and Coqui Nieto, pair number four, and Momo Gonzalez, John Sanz, pair number five. So I think that was impressive and showing that Rome was not luck, let's say. But if you ask me about the match of the tournament, that was definitely Lebron, Stupa, Galan, Chingotto, after the interview giving by LeBron talking about Galan, talking about Stupa, you go to the next tournament, you face them, you lose the first set, and then you come back in three sets. It was insane. I enjoy that much a lot.

So just like referencing the interview you talked about, this is when it seemed out of nowhere that LeBron had this interview about his side of things when him and Ghislaine split up. Right. Like, I don't quite know what caused this interview or why now, but it was. There was a. There was an interview, wasn't there? And he was basically saying that no one had listened to his side of the story and how he had been unfairly treated, like, during that split process. And it did. It happened like between Rome and this tournament, between this and Bioge. And so, you know, I was looking forward to them meeting, like, the tension in that game. And you obviously, you commentated that. So, like, how was that? Could you see the tension from the beginning?

I don't feel like the tension was there during the match, but after they finished, they go to the net for the handshake and it was so cold. Galan barely wanted to see LeBron there at the net.

It was.

It was weird in a second. But, you know, whenever we have LeBron facing Alan, it's always like this. You expect something sometimes even more from the fans than from the players. It's all good. But again, the context, the atmosphere after the interview made that match even more special. And having LeBron beating Galan for the first time after going separate ways, because after they split, it was always Galan beating LeBron five in a row. So now it's 5, 1. And the first time LeBron is able to win Galan. And doing it after the interview, talking about how he feels like Galan was not a good person in some moments of the relationship. It made it special.

It's great. I think it's great for men's Padel as well, right? Like the fact Stupa and LeBron, now they make that victory, they make them their way through to the final. They were close in Rome. They took that first set. Stupa was playing unbelievable. It seems like as a pair, they're. I would like to say they're stabilizing, but it seemed like this week there were as many fireworks as. As there always is with them. And we saw the coach getting involved in, in some of the change of ends. Like, like what was, you know, what was, what was going on there.

I think paddle wise, they played amazing. Even better than Go and Tapia in the finals. They were serving five, three. You know how tough it is to get a break. We were talking about this just a few minutes ago. They got the break in the first set against Kuyon Tapia. They were serving 5, 3, 30 love, and they lost it with a couple of mistakes from LeBron. So it wasn't Stupa because sometimes we feel like, oh, super is holding LeBron back. No, no. It was LeBron making a couple bad decisions and losing a 5, 3, 30 left. Two breaks in a row for Goyo Galan. They lost the first set and the second one was easy. But I think it was a good tournament overall for Stupa and LeBron. Even though they had this tense moment in, I think it was a quarter finals or the round of 16. But Sony wasn't very happy with LeBron saying, you have no salvation, you cannot be saved. And a classy moment from Stupa taking a second or two, going to the bathroom, breathing, coming back, saying, lebron, it's all good. Let's forget about the, the situation. Let's go and perform. And they did it. So I think it was a classy Move. And a classy moment from Stupa.

You don't often see super get upset, right? Like. Like, I feel like he's a player that's quite grounded, but, I mean, there was a. There was some clips there of, you know, him kind of throwing his racket at the side. Like, he was getting super frustrated with that situation with. With Rabon and the coach, and he couldn't. Like, it was almost like he. Yeah, I think, you know, like you say, stepping away, taking that break was a. Was a great decision. This is something we've talked. We talked about it, I think, in the commentary box in. In Rome as well. Of, like, you know, you're playing with LeBron, so, you know, he just says what he thinks. Almost like, there's almost not a filter. And so as the partner, you've got to be. You've got to be ready for that, right? You've got to be prepared. You've got to almost be even more empathetic than you might normally.

And this time, it felt like LeBron was the one receiving the punishment from Stupa. Stupa said with this attitude, with this negativity, you're playing for the opponents. You're a clown. He said, you're a clown, which is, you know, not very friendly. So that paellas, you're like you san. And he left the benches. And in that moment, LeBron told Bozzoni, you don't have the balls, if I'm allowed to say the word, to tell something to Stupa. When Stupa is missing, you don't say anything. And that's a moment where Pony says, you have no salvation.

Yeah.

Stupa come backs, comes back like nothing happened. He apologized, and they kept playing.

Yeah, yeah. So difficult, right? A heated mo. Heated moment and a change of ends. You know, as the coach, your job is to. To get your players to play the best. The best way. And maybe aggravating LeBron was the way to. The way to do that. You know, get him fired up, get him angry. You know, that could have been the. Could have been the tactic.

What do you think? Because this is something we. We talk a lot about. What do you think about putting a camera and a microphone in the benches?

I had this conversation with Augustine Salingo when he was, like, coaching, so he's. Some of the coaches, you know, for the players. And I was saying to him, I was like, it's difficult this because you are giving tactical advice to your team that. That people can hear, like, and you can go back into previous matches, and you can, you know, Hear the recording of what, what is being said, what tactical advice is being given. I, I personally, I don't. I don't think it's good for the sport. I think it's better. I mean, I get it from a viewer perspective, it's fantastic because you can see the coaches talking to the players and, and you really get into it. Like, it's nice to hear what they say. But I think from the actual performance of the sport, yeah, I'm not a huge fan of it. I think it would be, you know, be better if you don't know what the coaches are saying to the players. Right. Like, essentially you're. You're giving away the secrets of your pair.

In a way, it feels like this.

And the final. How was the final, Gonza? I mean, Tapia Cuello, pretty dominant throughout the tournaments. It looked, you know, straight sets for the most part.

Yeah, but. And the first set, Stupa and LeBron were playing better. They were playing much better than Koyun Tapia. But in that moment. 5, 3, 30, love. If you're facing Kuyyom Tapia, you cannot lose that set. You cannot just give them an extra chance. 5, 3, 30, love. Two or three mistakes from LeBron, they get a break. 5, 4, 5, 5, 6, 5. Another break for Koem Tapia and they lost it. 7, 5. So four games in a row for Goyan Tapia.

It wasn't one of those where he's right at the back of the court and he's tried to bring a smash back to his side, is it?

Yeah, exactly. And then a ball where it goes, because it's fun how smart and clever the players are. They know where the sun is, so they. They aim with a lob towards that zone. They place the high lob. Stupa couldn't see it. LeBron has to take it. He missed it and they got broken. And then in the second set, I think it was only a break. Not a lot of chances for Stupa. And they just went on airplane mode, controlling the pace, controlling everything, and they got it done.

And it looked like there were a couple of injury risks for next week. So Bordeaux is. Well, this week, actually looks like LeBron is not going to play it. Does that look like something he picked up in the final, you think?

Yeah, it was after a smash in the second set, and it was almost at the same time that we saw Tapia also with a couple, know, bad movements, weird faces. The body language was not the best from aia. And during the second set, everyone goes for a smash. He Feels something in his back and you could see how he was suffering at the end. He was not at 100%. Now he just announced that he will not play in Bordeaux. We're approaching the summer break and feels like this amount of tournaments, the energy they spend, especially these teams, because they're not the same. A team that plays first, second round, that Goyun, Tapia or Stupa, LeBron, that they go to every single tournament and you got to play five matches because you're always in the semifinals and finals. It feels like they're paying finally the price at the end of the mid season and we could see an injured LeBron or in pain LeBron and also.

For Tapia and also, I mean nowadays there's more and more in their calendar outside of Premier, right? Like these exhibition tournaments, these like little leagues that they're doing around the world, you know, plus the travel for the tournaments, it's. It all takes a physical, a physical toll, I think. Right. So you know, something like you say mid season, they're going to have to be really careful not to pick up something more serious.

Exactly.

Gonzo, just to wrap up then, who is your mvp? Female and male, for this week, it doesn't necessarily need to be the winners of the tournament. Who are you? Who are you most impressed by?

I think Paula Jose Maria. She has to take the MVP this time. And I'm going to give the MVP to LeBron this week because you got to, you got to perform after what you said, you got to give him some credit. After beating Galan for the first time, I think he was the mvp. If you were to choose one from the winners, it was Arturo. Arturo was better than Tapio this time.

Yeah, yeah. I mean, especially for LeBron to come out and say all that and for him then to go on and win was huge. Right? Like that, that was. Talk about performing under pressure. Gonza, thank you so much for this recap of the event. I know you're commentating this week in Bordeaux, so I'm hoping everyone will tune in to, to hear your excellent commentary and it's been an absolute pleasure.

My pleasure. And this week it's going to be fantastic. Different conditions, indoor tournament, so slower ball. So I think the next analysis, the next time we see each other's face, it's going to be different.

I look forward to it already.