At 46, Miguel Lamperti continues to surprise. After a career spent almost entirely on the left side of the track, the Argentinian seems to be entering a transition to the right, as we saw this week in Valladolid with Juan Tello. A mission that looks more complicated than expected...

A premature exit against Alonso and Bautista

Unfortunately for the two Argentinians, the experience was not crowned with success. Opposed to the top of Serie 8, Edu Alonso and Jairo Bautista in the first round, Tello and Lamperti lost 6/4 6/3The Spanish pair were able to exploit their opponents' lack of automatisms, forcing them to defend more than they would have liked.

Notable fact in this meeting: Tello and Lamperti tried to swap sides at every faceoff, alternating between right and left depending on the serve. An original strategy probably aimed at confusing their opponents' points of reference... but which also betrayed a certain hesitation in their distribution of roles.

Two explanations: lack of automation and conditions to exploit

The first explanation is necessarily the lack of automatism between the two players who are both much more comfortable on the left of the track, in particular Lamperti lacks experience on the right and which therefore has only very few landmarks on this side of the track. The two players therefore decide to swap serves by changing positions with each serve, thus playing Miguel Lamperti on his preferred side in attack.

The second explanation is found in the Valladolid playing conditions, this week temperatures will very often reach more than 30 degrees, a heat that creates very fast playing conditions. In these conditions, Miguel and Juan know, having the net is essential to be able to quickly attack opponents and shorten the stitches as much as possible. Changing sides with each serve, the two Argentinians leave no openings for return for their opponents of the day Alonso/Bautista. A good solution to have directly a good volley to play or even a smash, when we know how much this is complicated to lob directly on the return of serve.

A transition in progress

Despite the early elimination in Valladolid, Miguel Lamperti's desire to continue to perform at the highest level is intact. And if he manages to find the right formula, he could well extend his incredible career a little further. We will also see him once again on the right side of the track next week at Bordeaux P2, this time with another Argentinian, Alex Chozas.

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