Chingotto and Galán, mind, heart, and a world-class comeback to make history

Ale Galán on his knees. A thousand times before, that scene would have meant surrender, defeat, pain. But not this time. This time, it’s the perfect ending to a stunning comeback, with an iron-willed Fede Chingotto by his side. Galán dropped to his knees just a second after winning the World Cup, hands over his face, while Chingotto jumped on his back — climbing over his teammate just like he did for two hours against the world’s number ones, Coello and Tapia. Ale and Fede up there, under the lights of a magical night that turned into a world title, because the “Chingalán” duo have won the FIP World Cup Pairs. They poured in every ounce of mental strength, endurance, and cold blood they had to turn around a match that looked lost after the first set, and that, more than once in the second, seemed ready to slip away again.

But no. The two of them flipped it by digging as deep as they could. “Last year they used to beat us more easily, but this year we’ve definitely improved and we feel our level is higher,” Ale said after the semifinal. Maybe he already sensed what was coming. And in the end, it happened. He and Fede won a title that carves their names into padel history — and, above all, reopens the race for the Race. Thanks to tonight’s victory, the gap with the number ones shrinks to just 680 points, and the chase for the Barcelona Finals is far from over. In fact, Galán and Chingotto could even take over the lead as soon as Dubai.

STARTING AT FULL SPEED At Arena Kuwait — completely sold out, with 4,700 fans filling the stands of the BNK Central Court — the match picked up right where it left off: that 6-0 in the third and deciding set of Milan P1, won by the “Chingalán” duo in their last clash with the “Fab Four.” It was the spark for another incredible showdown. The world number ones came out hunting for revenge after the painful loss in Italy, breaking in the second game and setting the tone right away. It took them just 27 minutes to close the first set 6-2, with Arturo Coello on fire and his rivals almost powerless against the “King” and Tapia.

MIND AND HEART But the full reset came after just a few minutes on the bench. Back on court, the number two seeds changed both their attitude and their game, refusing to give Coello and Tapia any more room. Little by little, the top pair started to lose control: seven missed break points weighed heavily on Arturo and Agus, while at 5-all, Galán and Chingotto needed just one to break and take the set 7-5. By the end, the stats said it all: 50% of break points converted for the Chingaláns, just 16% for Coello and Tapia.

JOY AND TEARS From there, the match had only one direction. Chingotto and Galán were unstoppable, game after game, while Tapia and Coello grew less precise, less effective, and ran out of ideas to stop the charge. The point for 5-2 summed up the night: a soft smash from Coello recovered brilliantly off-court by “Chingo,” sealing the decisive break. In the next game, after missing their first match point, a Tapia ball into the net set off the celebration — Fede and Ale on their knees, in tears, celebrating a historic title. And after this night, the race for the end of the season is alive and burning brighter than ever.