During the FIP Star Beau Plan, organized in Mauritius, Clement Geens et Dylan Guichard secured their qualification for the round of 16 after a not so easy encounter against two South African players who came close to creating the surprise of the start of the tournament: Richard Ashforth and Egmond Van Heerden. Despite the disappointment, Richard and Egmond looked back on their journey and padel in South Africa. Interview.

"We can do better”

Richard Ashforth: Frankly, we are disappointed. We were leading 5-4 in the first set with the opportunity to serve to conclude, but we did not know how to manage the situation. We let important chances slip by, which allowed our opponents to regain the advantage. In the second set, we tried to come back, but we did not manage to impose our rhythm.

Egmond Van Heerden : At 5-4, it was a key moment. We started the game badly by making a few mistakes that put us in difficulty straight away. We were quickly led 30-0, which added pressure. Even though we managed to come back to 40-30, we were unable to capitalize on this opportunity. The set was decided in a tie-break, but again, we were unable to conclude.

Richard Ashforth: For our part, we knew that we had to stay focused, because their mistakes could allow us to take the upper hand. We knew how to be opportunistic at that moment.

The tournament conditions are superb

Richard Ashforth : It's really a great experience. The island is beautiful, the facilities are quality, and the organization is excellent. Playing here, in such a friendly atmosphere, is very pleasant. The public was there, and the matches broadcast live with commentary bring great visibility to the event. It's a pleasure to play in a tournament like this, and we will gladly come back next year.

The development of padel in South Africa

Egmond Van Heerden : Absolutely, padel is growing rapidly in our country. It is estimated that there are more than 200 players in South Africa. It is impressive to see how much popularity the sport is gaining. Right now, we are proud to be the image of padel in our country, even if it takes a lot of work to be competitive internationally.

Richard Ashforth : Padel is still in the structuring phase in South Africa, but we hope that it will evolve in the years to come. There is no real official ranking or national championship.

Ambitions for FIP tournaments

Richard Ashforth : Yes, we would really like to play more often on the FIP circuit. It is a challenge for us to travel to Europe or other countries, because it requires a lot of resources and organization. But we are discussing solutions to participate in more competitions and measure ourselves against top players.

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.

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