Rotterdam P1: Lebron / Stupa get through… but the signs are worrying

Last quarter-final of the evening at Premier Padel Rotterdam P1 , and a mixed victory for Juan LeBron and Franco Stupaczuk . In front of Sanyo Gutierrez and Gonzalo Alfonso , the Spanish-Argentine pair won in two sets, but left behind many questions.

A second set under tension

If you want to analyze a match rich in contradictory signals, you should have seen the end of this second set . Because this set should never have gone to a tie-break.

On the one hand, Sanyo , fragile in Lebron's diagonal, offered several opportunities to conclude to his opponents.
The other, Stupa , seemed overwhelmed and even sometimes infantilized by his partner. Lebron, who tries to contain himself, cannot help but reproach him for his choices and his faults.

The result: every time we think we're seeing the combative Stupa of the Di Nenno era return, mistakes put enormous pressure back on him. On screen, the contrast is striking: a tense player, sometimes seeming to feel like he's out of the way on the pitch.

Fatal errors on the side of Gutiérrez / Alfonso

The scenario could have been completely different. With a Sanyo less intermittent At the end of the set, the second set was expected to swing towards Gutiérrez / Alfonso. But between the clumsiness of the experienced Argentinian and the visible frustration of his young partner (Alfonso holds his head in his hands), the tie-break slipped out of their hands.

LeBron found success at the right time, and that was enough.

A fragile victory

Yes, Lebron and Stupa won. But it was a bad match for them, punctuated by smiles of relief rather than serenity. Their coach, Carlos Pozzi , even seemed to send a clear warning to Lebron: “Be careful not to fall back into your old ways.”

Because the reality is simple: this encounter could have turned into a disaster for the duo, so precarious was the balance. Lebron was close to falling off the wagon.

And now… Chingalan

Next step: the semi-final against Chingotto / Galan And unless a miracle happens, if Lebron and Stupa repeat the same performance, punishment seems inevitable.

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.