The penultimate day of the European Junior Championships in Budapest ended with a new show of strength from Spain. The young talents of “La Roja” will have the opportunity to defend the double title they won in 2022 in Valencia. They will face two teams that, after a remarkable week, hope to cause a surprise.

Spain / France

In the men's draw, the Spanish outclassed Belgium 3-0, with clear domination: Iago Fuertes and Alex Leira (under-14 category), Juan Zamora and Antonio Garcia (under-16), as well as Santiago Jose Pineda and Alejandro Calvo (under-18), all won their matches in two sets despite the resistance of the Belgians.

Spain will face France in the final, scheduled for tomorrow at 14pm. The French won an intense duel against Sweden. The match began with an already decisive victory in 3 sets by Sacha Huard de la Marre and Nathan Perrot (under 14) against Vilgot Persson and Filip Dahlqvist after more than 2 hours of play (7-6, 5-7, 6-4). The decisive point came from the victory in 2 sets by Olivier Guy de Chamisso and Jérémy Robert, followed by a Swedish success, that of Victor Forsberg and Willy Tiger Släryd (against Fonteny / Boronad), without consequences for the final result. The Swedes will play for third place against Belgium on Saturday at 14pm.

France / Portugal

The Spanish party continued in the women's category, where the young Spaniards won all three of their semi-final matches against France. The under-14 pair, Mar Munera and Martina Vera, opened the show with a 6-1, 7-5 victory over Augustine Charpentier and Zia Debroy. Then, Sara Folguer and Martina Calvo (under-16) won their match comfortably against Alice Aznar and Neïla Bekhedda 6-1, 6-0. The under-18 match was more contested in the first set, but Carla Fernandez and Diana Toledo finally got the better of Kimy Barla and Louise Bahurel (7-6, 6-0).

Italy, for its part, also shone in its clash against Portugal. The under-14 pair, Emma Speziali and Sophie Caruso won the first match against Carolina Santos and Andrea Achando, after two hours of play: 1-6, 7-6, 6-3 in favor of the Italians. They were followed by a clear victory for Vittoria Giraldi and Matilde Minelli (2-0 against Francisca Santos and Valentina Pestana), then a 2-1 victory for Aurora Buscaino and Camilla Livioni against Constança Gorito and Maria Clara Santos.

Italy, who finished third in Valencia, are now aiming for a big win in the final, scheduled for 9am against the reigning champions. The battle for third will therefore pit France against Portugal to clinch the final step of the podium.

Franck Binisti

Franck Binisti discovered padel at the Club des Pyramides in 2009 in the Paris region. Since then, padel has been part of his life. You often see him touring France to cover major French padel events.