Teodoro Zapata is Benjamin Tison's Spanish teammate, but few really know him. Padel Magazine went to meet him in Egypt during the FIP Star O West Cairo.

Ben has a lot of room for improvement

Padel Magazine : In France, people know who you are because they see your name next to Ben Tison's, but few really know you. Can you tell us what your story is?

Teo Zapata:"Thank you for hosting me. I come from Mérida and I am 26 years old. I started playing padel at 6 years old, and professionally at 22 years old. I now dedicate myself completely to padel. I am very happy with Ben, and we are full of motivation at the start of the season.

Padel Magazine : You are ultimately the person who knows Tison's game the best. What aspects of the game has he improved in the past two years?

Teo Zapata: “Ben has a lot of room for improvement because he hasn't been playing for long. padel. His greatest quality is his constant desire to learn. Now he understands the game much better. He has always had excellent shots, but it is in understanding the game that his level has increased. He is now able to play fast and slower. Technically, he has also improved a lot.”

The real problem is visibility

Padel Magazine : Last year it was in Vigo that you managed to get into the final draw. This year you do it from the first tournament in Miami. Do you think there are chances to do several paintings this season?

Teo Zapata: “At the moment the level is very balanced. We train to do a lot of paintings, but the circuit is super competitive, and it's possible that we won't succeed. We are training well to do a lot more.”

Padel Magazine : Yesterday, we interviewed Ben, and he told us that it was very hard for Spanish players of your level to be broadcast live. How do you analyze the matches if they are not filmed?

Teo Zapata:“We analyze training a lot by filming it. Beyond analyzing the matches, the real problem is visibility. To have a sponsor, it is very hard if the matches are not filmed. We hope to have more visibility. This kind of interview, or the photos you take, your Youtube streams, all of that helps me, and I thank you for that. I hope that media like you can go to more tournaments and do more and more streaming, to allow us to be a little more known.

Negotiate with the family

Padel Magazine : We are entering a new era with the tournaments of Premier Padel. What are your options with Ben for the first tournament in Doha?

Teo Zapata: "The padel seems to grow significantly. We don't know yet how it will be broadcast, but we hope that all matches will be. We will try to make a great result there. We want to continue to climb the rankings individually, but especially as a pair with Ben.”

Padel Magazine : Between the WPT, the FIP Tour, the tournaments Premier Padel, it will be a very demanding season. How do you prepare yourself physically and especially psychologically?

Teo Zapata: “On a physical level, I had a great pre-season with my physical trainer. In addition to strength, we did injury prevention. Between tournaments we mainly do physical training for the next tournament. Mentally, you have to negotiate with family and friends, because I'm not going to have a lot of time this year. I will have to dedicate it to my work. For me, it's easy because I'm young and I really want to play and make all these trips. But I also hear that we are in March, and that in September the speech may be different.

A complete player

Padel Magazine : Let's talk about your game. You have a lot of different shots. What aspects are you working on at the moment to refine your game?

Teo Zapata: “I am a very complete player who does not excel in any aspect, but without any real weak point. We work a lot on transitions in attack because I want to go faster in these phases. I also work on the volley, because I'm not aggressive enough for a left player. I have to progress on everything because I am on a dynamic of progression.

From his names, we can guess his Spanish and Italian origins. Lorenzo is a multilingual passionate about sports: journalism by vocation and events by worship are his two legs. He is the international gentleman of Padel Magazine. You will often see it on the various international competitions, but also on the major French events. @eyeofpadel on Instagram to see his best photos of padel !