Interviewed by our colleagues from Marca, Alex Ruiz spoke about his difficult separation from Momo Gonzalez. The “Captain America” of padel is now focused on his new collaboration with “El Gato”. The objective, to reveal the potential of this new duo at the Granada Open.

The delicate separation with Momo Gonzalez

"We struggled to get off to a good start. In Abu Dhabi we won a great match against Maxi and Campa, we reached the semi-finals in Doha beating number 1. But compared to expectations, we wanted to be more regular."

"People sometimes confuse regularity with results. When I talk about consistency, I'm talking about the level of play and the sensations as a player. I always want the best in gaming, but this time, I don't think we've reached the level of stability we wanted. We wanted the top pairs to watch the draw and say to each other “wow, we are going to face Alex and Momo”. Despite a year of work, I think that the level of our duet with Momo has stagnated."

Alex Ruiz Momo Gonzalez Joy Master Final 2022

"Momo is my friend and I always want the best for him. Leaving a partner just at the beginning of the year bothers me a lot and makes me very sad because it is something that does not suit me. It is easier to be left than to leave someone, as it is in romantic relationships. In both cases, I tried to take things the same way, but this time it was very difficult. He's my friend and everything we experienced on the pitch was real. We haven't seen it on TV, but after the last match with Momo in Paraguay, I burst into tears."

The harmful impact of social media

"It hurts me that people don't stop to get to know the person and stick to the fact rather than what surrounds that fact. People say “look at this guy, he left Momo after just three tournaments, they were a really good pair… and it's true, we were a really good duo.”

"But hey, people don't know you, they think I left Momo, I tried to do my best and I was clear with him before Chile. I wanted what was best for him. There are criticisms that are not constructive. These are things that hurt because people only stick to what is happening on the surface.”

"I think people have short memories because I read all the comments on Tello… and also on Paquito! I'm surprised that many people talk about two players like that, maybe they went through a bad patch, yes, or they didn't get along, but we must not forget that they are two exceptional players ."

Write a new page with El Gato

"We went to Chile, a somewhat chaotic trip, and there I received a message from Tello and it made me very happy because he is a player that I have always appreciated. I even told Momo late last year we have similar games. I hope that the expectations will be fulfilled and that the sensations will be reflected on the court."

"For the moment I will continue to live in Malaga, but the few weeks that we will be free I will go to Madrid to train with Rodri (Ovide) and Tello. The idea is to connect the whole team as much as possible to work like robots.

"In recent days, I had doubts about how we were going to approach the defensive aspect, but they disappeared suddenly. Currently we are training together and it is as if we have known each other forever. Tello gives me a lot on the pitch, I think he can bring me a lot. We haven't set a specific goal, but I think that together we can achieve the best possible position in the standings.”

Alex Ruiz and Juan Tello will play their first match on Tuesday against Pincho Fernandez and José Antonio Diestro, the Open 500 finalists in Reus.

To see the full interview in Spanish, it's here.

Vincent Gallie

A fan of oval football, round ball but also racket sports, he was stung by the padel during his adolescence in Galicia. As comfortable in front of the camera as behind a microphone, Vince will be able to bring his vision and expertise as a fan of the little yellow ball.

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