The FIP Euro Padel Cup Final 8 will feel like a home game for Christian Medina Murphy as GB’s men take on Europe’s ‘big boys’ this week in Linea de la Concepción.
GB men’s no.1 Medina Murphy grew up in Jerez, in the same Spanish province of Cadiz where this week’s championships are taking place, just north of the border with Gibraltar.
Medina Murphy will be roared on by his Spanish father, family and friends who are making the short journey to the Linea de la Concepción bullring. There, GB’s men will do battle with Europe’s big guns — Spain, Italy, France and Portugal — plus fellow qualifiers Netherlands, Sweden and Germany.
The format is two groups of four, with the top two in each group going through to semi-finals and the bottom two heading straight home, with no play-offs for finishing positions, as there was at last year’s European Championships in Sardinia.
The draw will take place on Monday night, and men’s seventh seeds GB are guaranteed to face two of the ‘big four’ in their group, plus a fellow qualifier.
“All my dad’s family are from Jerez and 10 or 15 Spanish guys are going to come and support the GB team,” Medina Murphy told The Padel Paper.
“It’s really close to where I grew up. I started playing padel aged 14 in Cadiz, before moving to Murcia for my university degree and I’m now based in Alicante.”
The 27-year-old, who was born in Kingston-upon-Thames, is realistic about GB’s prospects in Cadiz this week.
Read more: Aimee Gibson says GB’s women have earned respect ahead of FIP Euro Padel Cup Final 8
GB’s men sailed through FIP Euro Padel Cup qualifying in Madrid in July with 3-0 victories over Switzerland, Greece and Monaco — but Medina Murphy is well aware that mixing it with “the big boys” in the Final 8 will be a different level altogether.
“Now we’re with the big boys, it’s very tough,” he said. “We have chances against nearly all the countries except maybe Spain and Portugal. After that, it’s Italy and France, Sweden have a tough team, then it’s the Netherlands, us and Germany, who are the weakest on paper.
“We can win two matches [out of three] against anyone except maybe Portugal and Spain. If we have good days and believe in ourselves, we can maybe get to the semi-finals and be in the top four.
“It’s going to be tough because we will have Spain or Italy in our group, and France or Portugal. If we have France, that will give us a chance to qualify, maybe 25-30%. If we are drawn with Spain and Portugal, it’s going to be nearly impossible. We have to try to get into the top four. Let’s see if we can do it.”
GB captains Sandy Farquharson and John Leach have picked the same squad of eight that coasted through July’s qualifying.
Medina Murphy was paired with GB no.2 Sam Jones in all three matches in Madrid and they didn’t drop a set. At no.2, Louie Harris and debutant Alex Loughlan also looked rock solid. At third string, Tom Farquharson played in all three matches alongside Alfonso Patacho and latterly debutant Jamie Lobo. Nikhil Mohindra got no match time, but will hope for an outing in Cadiz.
Top 100 quest goes on…
While GB’s women now have two players in the world’s top 100, the men’s quest to reach double figures goes on. Medina Murphy, currently no. 117, has skirted around the top 100 for a couple of years.
“Of course, you try to get into the top 100, but to be honest, it’s tough just to stay in the same position,” says the GB no.1. “You have so many countries improving so fast. The level is always getting better.
“It’s exploding everywhere. The UK is one step behind countries such as Sweden and Holland as they had courts and coaches before us. You start to see South American countries with players in the top 100, now Sweden, Belgium and France. It’s tough, but we keep going!”
The draw for the FIP Euro Padel Cup Final 8 group stage takes place on Monday evening at Linea de la Concepción. The action begins at 10am local time on Tuesday.
All the details on the FIP Euro Padel Cup Final 8 on the official website
The Padel Paper will bring you all the latest from Cadiz throughout the week
