As the world’s top players get in to action in the World Padel League at the Coco Cola Arena from Wednesday, we take a look at the 28 players from four teams as they battle for supremacy.
Cheetahs
Paula Josemaria Martín
She was born on October 31, 1996, in Moraleja, Spain. The young padel player has climbed a few positions in the World Padel Tour ranking in recent years to take the top spot. She began her tennis career at a very young age to become the junior champion of her home region Extremadura. At 17 she took up padel and quickly rose up the ladder. She is known for her irreverent style of play and also understanding the dynamics of this sport.
Pablo Lima
He was born on October 11, 1986 in Porto Alegre, Brazil. Pablo and his ex-teammate Juani Mieres managed to beat the best pair in history, padel pair Fernando Belasteguín and Juan Martín Díaz. Pablo Lima, who is currently ranked 10th, begun to play alongside Fernando Belasteguin. Together they have been at the top of the league in 2015 and 2016.
Ariana Sánchez Fallada
She was born on July 9, 1997 in Reus, Spain. Ariana's skills, determination and passion on the court, have allowed her to become one of the most successful young players in this sport, remaining in the top of the rankings in recent years.
Miguel Yanguas Diez
He was born on March 18, 2002 in Malaga, Spain. The youngster, currently ranked 19, has stood out in youth categories in the Spanish padel.
María Virginia Riera
She was born on September 27, 1988 in Resistencia, Argentina. Riera, ranked 7th, had to leave country to follow her passion for padel. Her decision paid off as Riera is now one of the best defensive players in the world.
Fernando Belasteguin
He was born on May 19, 1979 in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Currently ranked No 8 Belasteguin was the youngest player in the world to reach No 1 ranking at the age of 22. He along with Juan Martin Diaz were the only pair in history to spend 1 year 9 months undefeated, winning 22 consecutive tournaments (September 2005 to May 2007).
Abdulla Ahli
The 24-year-old Emirati Abdulla Ahli was ranked No 4 in the UAE and is a highly skilled player with remarkable victories, including the Nad Al Sheba International Padel Championship, the Arab Champions Cup and the GCC Padel Cup.
Jaguars
Jeronimo Gonzalez Luque
He was born on May 15, 1996 in Madrid, Spain. Gonzalez Luque, currently ranked No 13, has had an outstanding career and was crowned champion in 2021 with the Spanish national team at the World Padel Championship of Doha.
Alejandra Salazar
She was born on December 31, 1985 in Madrid, Spain. The Spanish professional is currently ranked 3rd in the world and is a legend of the sport who has an impressive track record. Salazar has been world champion 5 times, Spanish champion 8 times and has 50 titles to her credit in World Padel Tour.
Franco Stupaczuk
He was born on May 25, 1996 in Chaco, Argentina. Ranked 6th, Stupaczuk won together with the Brazilian a WPT title and two Premier Padel titles, one in Argentina and the other in Egypt last season. In addition he also won the World Padel Championship with the Argentinian national team.
Gemma Triay Pons
She was born on June 28, 1992 in Alayor in Spain. Gemma started playing tennis before switching to padel, where she has established herself as one of the best players in the world. Ranked 3rd, she has won four World Padel Championships.
Carlos Daniel Gutiérrez
He was born on June 15, 1984 in San Luis, Argentina. Ranked 5th, Carlos Daniel Gutiérrez Amaya has more than 20 titles in his collection and has reinvented the game with some amazing moves.
Carolina Navarro Björk
She was born on February 26, 1976 in Malaga, Spain. Ranked 47, the Spanish-Swedish legend, who still plays at a high level, made her debut for the Swedish national team last year.
Abdullah Al Abdullah
The 17-year-old is one of the promising talents in UAE. The teenager, who is the youngest player to play World Padel tour, has won the GCC tournament, runner-up to FIP Promotion Oman, won the NAS National tournament and won the Pink Padel Bahrain Matchpot Challenger earlier this month. Abdullah and Fares Aljanahi became the first Emirati, GCC and Arab team to play in the World Padel Tour main draw.
Tigers
Francisco Navarro Compan
He was born on February 10, 1989 in Seville, Spain. Ranked 9th, Francisco Navarro has played more than 53 matches on the World Padel Tour, of which he has won 397, while adding 15 consecutive victories.
Delfina Brea Senesi
She was born on December 5, 1999 in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Currently ranked 18 in the world, Delfina Brea Senesi is the daughter of great coach Nito Brea. At 15, she played her first professional tournament -World Padel Tour tournament in Spain and since then has won several laurels.
Federico Chingotto
He was born on April 13, 1997 in Olavarria-Buenos Aires, Argentina. Currently ranked No 10. Although Federico Chingotto's love of padel tennis began as a child, it was not until he was 14 years old that he became a professional player which now spans more than seven years where he has had some impressive wins.
Victoria Iglesias Segador
She was born on May 16, 1994 in Sevilla, Spain. Segador has had a very amazing padel career, in which she is saw upward trajectory in 2017 where she participated in five semi-finals.
Juan Tello
He was born on February 1, 1995 in Cordoba, Argentina. Juan Tello has showed great promise in the circuit and has practically played his entire professional career alongside Federico Chingotto making them the longest couple of the circuit.
Marta Ortega
She was born on February 14, 1997 in Madrid, Spain. Currently ranked 6th Marta Ortega holds the record for the youngest player to occupy the highest position in the World Padel Tour ranking. In 2019, at just 22 years old and partnering with the legendary Marta Marrero, she dominated the padel tour.
Salem Alhouli
The 27-year-old Emirati is an experienced campaigner and has been part of the UAE team for a few years now. Alhouli won the Arab championship a couple of months ago involving GCC and Iran teams. He was also part of the UAE team that won the GCC Padel Cup last year and also part of the winning NAS National team and apart from taking part in the World Cup.
Panthers
Aranzazu Osoro Ulrich
She was born on June 3, 1996 in Parana, Argentina. Currently ranked 8, Ulrich has won 158 matches in the 268 matches played in the World Padel Tour.
Alejandro Ruiz Granados
He was born on June 12, 1994 in Malaga, Spain. A left-handed player, currently ranked 14, fought diabetes and is now one of the most important players in the world a fixture in the final phases of all the major padel tournaments. In 2021 Granados established himself as a top-level player with the two titles won together with Argentine Franco Stupaczuk: the Sardegna Open and the Mexico Open.
Lucía Sainz Pelegri
She was born on October 5, 1984 in Barcelona, Spain. She made a mark in the junior tennis circuit where Pelegri won six doubles title on the ITF Women’s Circuit before retiring in 2009. Since 2015, she is a professional padel player where she has attained a world No 1 ranking as of 2020. In 2018, she was awarded the Dona y Esport award as Barcelona’s best athlete.
Arturo Coello Manso
He was born on March 8, 2022 in Valladolid in Spain. After a flawless run through the junior tour, Arturo, currently ranked No 4 decided to start competing on the World Padel Tour in 2019 at the age of 17. In 2021 Coello Manso skyrocketed up the rankings finishing as the year-end No. 15 on the men’s tour, qualifying for the Master Final. In 2022 he won three tournaments: Miami, becoming the youngest player in history to win a WPT tournament, Amsterdam, and the Madrid Master, establishing himself as one of the up-and-coming stars. Although his best padel would come in 2023, with a stellar string of titles to start the year: Abu Dhabi, La Rioja (Argentina), Chile, Paraguay and Granada.
Beatriz González Fernández
She was born on November 23, 2001 in Malaga, Spain. Beatriz González Fernández has captivated the fans for her daring style on the court. The talent and quality of the young player from Malaga are unquestionable, which is why she has made her place among the top 5 in the world ranking. 6 years after her debut, she got the 5th position in the WPT ranking, holding titles as important as four times champion of Spain (benjamin, alevín, infantil and junior), three times champion of the National Master of Minors or five Championships of Andalusia, among others. Her goal is to become number one in the world, and everything seems to indicate that she will achieve it in the not too distant future.
Javier Garrido Gomez
He was born on October 26, 2000 in Andalusia, Spain. In 2015, Javier Garrido Gomez began to play some World Padel Tour event and in 2017, he established himself in the circuit. Two years later he had a great season where he managed to reach the semi-finals for the first time in a World Padel Tour event at just 18 years old. He even went up to the top of the rankings with some great runs in the following tournaments.
Fares Aljanahi
The 24-year-old Emirati comes from a family rich in tennis history in UAE. Fares' brother Mohammad Aljanahi also plays for UAE padel team. Ranked eighth in UAE Fares, has won several titles under his belt including the GCC Padel Cup and has won the UAE Nationals Wild Card championship and the Pink Padel Bahrain Matchpot Challenger on June 4. Fares Aljanahi and Abdullah Abdullah became the first Emirati, GCC and Arab team to play in the World Padel Tour main draw.
World Padel League a welcome boost to UAE
High-voltage matches and entertainment set to enthrall fans for next four days
The inaugural World Padel League is set to usher in a new era for the fastest growing sport in the world as 24 of the world’s best will be in action from Thursday to Sunday, showcasing their skills at the Coca-Cola Arena in Dubai, the sporting capital of the world. Adding to the excitement is the presence of four UAE stars (one each in four teams), whose addition is set to bolster the sport in the country.
A perfect blend of sport and entertainment — concerts by Simply Red, Nicky Romero and Mithoon and Friends — in Dubai, the Greatest Show on the Court is set to enthral the fans over the next four days.
One set each
Four teams — Jaguars, Panthers, Tigers and Cheetahs — will be competing for the top honours in the World Padel League for a total prize fund of Dh826,000. The champions will receive Dh550,000, while the runners-up will be awarded Dh275,000. The prize money is a reflection of the league’s commitment to promoting and rewarding excellence in the sport of padel. Each team will play men’s doubles, women’s doubles and a mixed doubles games of one set each.
Participating players include Ariana Sanchez and Paula Josemaria both ranked No 1 as well as Alejandra Salazar Bengoechea and Gemma Triay, both ranked No 3 in the world. Other notable players include Arturo Coello, ranked No 4 in the men’s division. Also competing are Carlos Daniel Gutierrez, ranked No 5, and Beatriz Gonzalez and Marta Ortega, both ranked No 5 and 6 respectively in the women’s division. Over four days, these top players will showcase their skills in intense matches, providing non-stop action and entertainment for fans.
Abdulla Ahli, fourth-ranked UAE player, is excited to be part of the grand show and has set himself a reasonable targets while being part of the star-studded show.
Learning curve
“It’s an honour for us to play with the professional players, this experience is something new for us. We can learn a lot from these players, their preparation before matches, how they are focused during matches and so on,” Ahli told Gulf News ahead of his participation in the Greatest Show on the Court. Ahli is a highly skilled player with remarkable victories, including the Nad Al Sheba International Padel Championship, the Arab Champions Cup and the GCC Padel Cup.
“After the World Cup last October, it is the second time we are getting a chance like this. Playing against the top players, we don’t get these chances everyday. My goal is to learn as much as possible from the event.”
Big league exposure
Abdulla will be joined by young UAE talent Abdullah Abdullah, Fares Aljanahi and Salem Alhouli in a move designed to give the home stars the required exposure in the big league, but Abdulla is hoping to see more players in the coming years.
“It’s a move that is aimed at improving the sport in the country. Now we are only four player, may be next there will be more players. It will also encourage others to train harder and do their best and grab their spots and replace us,” he added. “I have been playing against these players almost every day, so it is not going to be different. At the end we are all friends and brothers.”
Dizzy heights
Another UAE player Mohammad Aljanahi, who is nursing an injury and hence missed the cut for the World Padel League, feels events like these will take the fastest growing sport to a dizzy heights.
Padel has made rapid strides during the last decade and the ease of playing at the amateur level is one of the reasons for the development of numerous courts across the country. The UAE has seen the sport grow between 40 to 50 per cent annually and the pandemic also played a big role in boosting the popularity as people were looking to find ways to keep them active.
On the professional level, padel has seen a rise in the number of tournaments and ranking points.
High-octane game
“In 2017 there would be one tournament every six months and now in 2023 you have a minimum five tournaments with different categories each weekend. Such is the growth,” Mohammad Aljanahi added.
“We are reinventing the whole game in the team format. It’s going to be a high-octane game. We will have two matches a day with a total of six sets. Players will be fighting for every single point for the glittering World Padel League Trophy and huge prize. We want to make this the richest franchise-based padel tournament across the globe,” Rajesh Banga, Chairman, World Padel League, had said during the launch of the event.
Every game, every set, single point towards the final outcome. Let’s wait for the action to begin.
Match schedule:
Day 1 — June 8
2pm: Cheetahs vs Jaguars
6pm: Panthers vs Tigers
Day 2 — June 9
2pm: Cheetahs vs Jaguars
6pm: Panthers vs Tigers
Day 3 — June 10
2pm: Cheetahs vs Jaguars
6pm: Panthers vs Tigers
Day 4 — June 11:
2pm: WPL Finals
Concerts:
June 9: Simply Red, 9.30pm
June 10: Nicky Romero, 9:30pm
June 11: Mithoon and friends, 7:00pm
Book your tickets now on Coca-Cola Arena’s official website, Platinum List, and Virgin Megastore. Tickets for Day 1 and Day 4 are at a special rate of Dh99 only and a single ticket is for both the padel matches and the concerts on Day 2 and Day 3.
For more information, visit www.wplworld.com or call +971 58 592 6993.
