Italy claim bronze once again: fourth consecutive podium for the Azzurre as France are beaten. Ferrari: “An incredible joy, the hard work of a great team pays off”

• Victories for Baldi/Sussarello and Dal Pozzo/Stellato prove decisive. The captain celebrates: “The younger players have integrated perfectly with the more experienced ones. A well-deserved medal”
  

DOHA – Behind Spain and Argentina, Italy have finished third for the fourth consecutive time. The medal won in Doha by Marcela Ferrari’s team is hugely significant, confirming their position immediately behind the two superpowers of world padel. It also marks a step forward, as shown by the final 2-0 scoreline in the bronze-medal match over France: in none of the previous three editions in which the Azzurre reached the podium had the third-place play-off been decided after just the first two matches of the tie. The opening point went to Caterina Baldi and Giulia Sussarello, who came from behind to beat Lucile Pothier and Carla Touly 4-6 6-1 6-3. “It was tough. I was very tense because, for the first time, I really felt the weight of responsibility”, admitted Baldi. “I want to thank Giulia, who helped me enormously. Little by little, we managed to relax”. Sussarello added: “Stepping on court and managing these emotions is not easy. I think the tension was visible, but we stayed strong and united and managed to come through a difficult situation. The support of all the girls and Marcela was crucial. She was on the bench with us and is always one of us. Her support is extremely important. We were a great team and we showed it on court”.

 

 

 

They demonstrated it again in the second match, with Giulia Dal Pozzo and Emily Stellato beating Alix Collombon and Louise Bahurel in two sets, 7-6 6-3. “It wasn’t easy to step on court knowing that the podium was at stake, so the pressure was certainly there”, explained Dal Pozzo. “I didn’t start at 100%, but I left everything out there and Emily helped me enormously. In the end, we managed to win the match”. Ferrari fielded a generational pairing, bringing together 21-year-old Dal Pozzo and 44-year-old Stellato. “You always feel the emotions, whether you are a veteran or not”, Emily confirmed. “You feel the responsibility, every ball matters and today it was also very hot. But this means so much to us, for ourselves, for the whole team and for everyone who follows us. It’s something wonderful”.

 

Marcela Ferrari is celebrating another outstanding result for Italian padel: “It’s an incredible joy, a well-deserved bronze medal that confirms Italy’s position behind the two great powers of padel, Argentina and Spain. This medal is particularly special because here in Doha the national team opened its doors both to its most established players, who have done and continue to do so much for Italian padel, and to newcomers who have earned the right to wear the Azzurri shirt through hard work and dedication. While the more established players have once again proved their reliability, it is only right to say a few words about the newcomers, particularly about how well they have integrated into the team, both on and off the court. In the end, it can all be summed up in a short message: hard work pays off. The girls have worked extremely well, and this is the result”.