Manu Martín: “Coaches are part of the game, but we are not so involved”

It was during an interview with Olé Padel that Manu Martín returned to the flagship couple of the moment, that formed by Arturo Coello and Agustin Tapia as well as to the controversy that arose in the final in Chile.

Manu Martín, a key figure in the padel world, is the third member of the coaching staff of Agustín and Arturo: “It's a project in which I'm learning a lot and it couldn't have gone better. And beyond the sporting results, the work atmosphere is great. At best, it would have been hard for us to think that a start to the season could have gone so well."

This year, he sat in their chair at two tournaments: at the Qatar Major in Doha, and at the Chile Open 1000 in Santiago where that controversial final against Lebrón and Galán took place.

Tapia-Coello, two different personalities

I would define Arturo as a shark, a predator, in the sense that he has a clear objective: he wants to be the best and he trains every minute. He stays focused on that. He has a competitive spirit that I have rarely seen and he has had it for many years.

I've always been surprised by his progress: he's a sponge that has absorbed the best of each player. He wants to win at all costs, he is very conscientious and demanding in his work.

He has all the ingredients so that, if the opportunities come his way again as it has been, he can still give you the results he has obtained.

And when it comes to Agus, who we call the Mozart or the Genie, when we really see him play, we say to ourselves “What a talented guy!”. But when we ask him to explain why he does what he does, we realize that something else is going on in his head. We are not on an equal footing.

His perception on the formation of the Coello-Tapia pair

I'm quite conservative. I was already working with Arturo at that time. It is true that it seemed to me that this change was a little early.

I knew they could be competitive, but they had always been in the shadow of a leader, a more experienced player, and they hadn't had a chance to stand on their own yet. I consider it a courageous decision.

When I spoke with Arturo, he said “I want to play with Tapia”. And Tapia said the same thing. However, uncertainty remained at this time. The safest option would have been to wait a little longer, but when two players have such a desire to play together and talk about a medium-long term project, then here we go.

We had doubts about leadership and performance, especially since they are two irregular players. And the pre-season has accentuated the doubts. But it happened like that, and now everything is phenomenal!

The WPT Chile Open final scandal: a litmus test to strengthen the mind

"More than a litmus test, it was a confirmation. We now know that they are a team, which when things go wrong, are always there.

It's this kind of ordeal that allows you to say: “If you overcome this, you will come out of this very strong."

Words that already held Agustín Tapia in interview with us a few days ago.

Could a different end result have been possible?

The coaches are part of the game, but we're not really involved that much. We are in a situation where we cannot even applaud our players without being warned.

But at this point in the final, I warned Honorio (the referee): “You announced 30-40 when it's 40-30”.

I put you in this scenario: I intervene and I risk having a “warning” on the team. Video review is requested, point is repeated or whatever.

If we hadn't won the game, the responsibility would have been entirely mine, because I'm the one who gets up and stops the game.

Eleonore Coulibaly

What a pleasure to be a journalist in the middle of the padel, an attractive growing sport. I hope you enjoy the content offered. See you soon perhaps on the slopes!