FIP Euro Padel Cup, Women’s Day2. Belgium’s big win: group A will be decided on the final day

Almost seven hours on court and a match decided at the very last moment.
Nine hard and intense sets, point after point. The endless battle between Belgium and Portugal in the second day of the women’s Group A at the FIP Euro Padel Cup will go down in the history of the competition — full of surprises, comebacks, great fair play, and the pure essence of the will to win. It’s hard to say who wanted it more; the Portuguese players lost the first set three times and still came back to force a third. But the clearest image of Belgium’s amazing performance came when Justine Pysson and Elyne Boeykens, down a break at 2–4 against Ana Nogueira and Patricia Ribeiro, managed a comeback to 6–4, closing the match and giving Belgium the dream of reaching a historic semifinal in this European event. Tomorrow, Belgium will play a decisive match against the Netherlands: if they win and Spain beats Portugal, Belgium will qualify mathematically. Simple? Not really. The standings are so tight that all four teams in Group A — including the Netherlands — still have a chance to reach the semifinals on the third and final day.

About fair play: the match between Belgium and Portugal was also a great example of sportsmanship. In the third and decisive match, at 2–0 in the tie-break of the second set (Belgium leading by one set), world No. 39 Ana Nogueira made an amazing recovery at the net, scoring a spectacular point. “Touch,” said the referee, calling a net touch by the Portuguese player. She protested: “No, you can’t! I was one meter away!” The referee confirmed the call, but then Justine Pysson and Elyne Boeykens stepped in to defend their opponent: “She didn’t touch the net,” they said. The referee reversed the decision — 3–0 Portugal, who went on to win the tie-break but lost the match in the third set. That’s also FIP Euro Padel Cup — a true lesson in sportsmanship.

Meanwhile, Spain continues its unstoppable run. The defending champions remain at the top of Group A after a 3–0 win against the Netherlands. Lucia Sainz, this time paired with Marina Guinart, opened with a 6–2, 6–2 win over Hemmes/Weterings; then Andrea Ustero and Ale Alonso followed with another double 6–2 against Bernard/Van Der Hoek; and finally Lorena Rufo and Martina Calvo closed with a 6–1, 6–1 victory over Groenveld/De Vocht.