While the second men's semi-final between  Agustín Tapia / Arturo Coello  et  Momo Gonzalez / Lucas Campagnolo  It still hasn't started at the Foro Italico, and annoyance is starting to rise backstage.

The reason? The women's semi-final between  Ariana Sánchez / Paula Josemaría  à  Andrea Ustero / Alejandra Alonso engaged in a marathon battle that approaches four hours of gameplay.

Meanwhile, the first men's semi-final between  Juan Lebrón / Leo Augsburger  et  Ale Galán / Fede Chingotto  was completed in just 1 hour 20 minutes. By 15:50 pm, the winners had already left the court long ago, while the four players in the second semi-final were still waiting their turn at 22 pm.

A clear advantage for Chingotto and Galán

In a competition where matches come thick and fast and every hour of recovery counts, the gap is considerable.

While  Galan and Chingotto  While they can already recover, receive care, eat and calmly prepare for their final, the future opponents from the other semi-final must still wait before even entering the court.

According to several reports gathered around the tournament, the four players involved are not hiding their frustration. Many believe that better organization would have prevented this situation, especially since the first two semi-finals of the day were relatively short.

The first women's semi-final had, however, started at 13 p.m.

But this day inevitably reignites the debate.

Several players believe the schedule should be moved forward by at least an hour, or even more. Some are even suggesting the semi-finals start as early as 11 a.m. to minimize the risk of disruptions.

Because if the first two matches had also exceeded three hours of play, the situation could have become even more problematic.

The alternation of men and women called into question

The other subject of debate concerns the order of the matches.

In Rome, the organization chose to alternate the paintings:

  • Women's Semi-final
  • Men's semi-final
  • Women's Semi-final
  • Men's semi-final

A formula that guarantees equivalent exposure to both paintings, but which can create a real sporting imbalance.

The last match of the day is inevitably the one that suffers the most delays. Its winner then has much less time to recover before the final the following day.

Conversely, players who finish several hours earlier benefit from a significant advantage in their physical, tactical and mental preparation.

Some players in the circuit believe that the two men's semi-finals, like the two women's semi-finals, should be scheduled consecutively to ensure maximum fairness.

Another, even more important problem: the playing conditions

But beyond recovery, another element is particularly worrying the players.

The Italy Major is held outdoors, and conditions change significantly throughout the day.

As this women's semi-final drags on, the humidity is already starting to take its toll on Centre Court. The glass walls are becoming increasingly slippery, the bounces more unpredictable, and the overall conditions are nothing like those observed just a few hours earlier.

However, the four players who will take to the court for the last men's semi-final will have to deal with these very particular parameters.

The problem is obvious: they will be playing in conditions that could be completely different from those of the final the following day.

These conditions could even directly influence the sporting outcome.

The domination of Arturo Coello  et  Agustín Tapia  Their success largely depends on their ability to impose an extremely high offensive pace. Their power, aggression at the net, and effectiveness in attacking phases generally allow them to build significant leads over the competition.

But when humidity sets in, some landmarks disappear.

The glass reacts differently, trajectories become less predictable, and the game can lose some of its usual logic. In these circumstances, the gaps between teams sometimes tend to narrow.

Without calling into question the status of the world's number one favorites, these particular conditions could offer a window of opportunity to  Momo González  et  Lucas Campagnolo .

As the match progresses into the evening, humidity could become an increasingly significant factor. And in a context where unpredictability plays a greater role, the level of play could naturally even out.

Even before the final men's semi-final had begun, the controversy had not yet erupted publicly. But in the corridors of the Foro Italico, the topic was already on everyone's lips.

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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