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The FIP Promotion India Padel Open turned out to be a remarkable event to the CUPRA FIP Tour calendar as well as the growing presence of padel in the country. The event held from Nov 21 through Nov 24 at Bennett University, Greater Noida, welcomed all padel stars from all around the world during this 4 days extravaganza. This particular sport got prominence in India back in 2017 and since then it has gained popularity in many metro cities.
Spain's Sergi Guimet Bigas was one of the highest-ranked players (187th) along with his partner Joel Olivera Palos ahead of the big event. The Spanish duo unfortunately had to bow out of the tournament in the quarter-finals, where they lost to eventual champions in the Men's Doubles category against countrymen Pol Alsina and Edu Altimires Ros.
Times Padel caught up with one-half of the Sergi-Joel duo- Sergi Guimet, where he reflected on his journey in the sport, his inspirations, his views on the growing popularity of padel compared to other racket sports like pickleball and tennis.
Journey into Padel
Sergi says that his introduction to padel was natural since, at the time of his birth, it had already been in existence in Spain for decades. His parents showed great interest in the sport in their younger years and, therefore, padel was part of his upbringing. Contrary to many who switch from other sports like tennis, badminton, or table tennis, padel was his first competitive sport.
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''In my case, as this sport landed like 40 years ago, so before I was born, my parents were already into the sport when they were in their twenties. So when I was born, the first sport that I started competing was padel'', he said.
The 26-year-old hailed Argentine padel great, Fernando Belasteguin is the biggest inspiration in sports for him. His long term at the world's number one player can be said to be the result of his discipline and mindset, rather than raw skill as per him.
''It has to be Fernando Belasteguin. He Has been the number 1 in the world for many, many years, and he's an inspiration because because of his constancy. He's not like a super skilled player compared to many other players, who have better skills'', Guimet said.
Padel vs Pickleball vs Tennis
When it comes to the battle among padel, pickleball and tennis, Sergi prefers padel a lot more because he perceives it to be livelier and more exciting, such as the range of different shots, tricks and the strategies at play here compared to tennis. As far as pickleball is concerned, he described it as a highly repetitive sport and lacks the fun factor compared to the richer dimensions of padel.
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''Padel is the most difficult sport technically because, first of all, you have to to use the glasses. So that's a condition because if it's wet or if it's warm, then you have to vary your technique. In padel, you also have to know how to defend and how to attack and at the same time you need to have a clear idea of maintaining the transitions''.
''It's not just about the ball bouncing and volleying, but also including smashing and also there are many shots that the pickleball doesn't have. So at some point, it gets more specific. With pickleball, you have to learn less movements. With paddle, you have a huge variety of skills and movements you can learn. Pickleball is quite kinda repetitive but padel is more fun'', Sergi emphasized.
The Spaniard passionately advocates for padel as a sport that combines technical skill, strategy and excitement, making it a standout choice among racquet sports.
Future Goals
Sergi Guimet aims to enter the top 100 in the world rankings in the next two years and in the coming five years, he eyes greater things.
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''The idea is to to keep growing in the rankings till I can get at least to the top 100. Hopefully in less than 2 years, I can be there and in the 5 years, even better, who knows? It will depend on if I have injuries or not, on the results, and, of course, on how this sport grows'', Guimet expressed.
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