British stars Tom Farquharson & Hanna Maddock 'focusing on the process' ahead of FIP Euro Padel Cup
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Debutant Tom Farquharson says the Great Britain team will "just focus on the process" in the build-up to the FIP Euro Padel Cup rather than getting too caught up in the Phase 2 draw.
The competition, which begins on Monday (7 July) at Padel G24 in Madrid, is a much-changed version of the annual European Padel Championships, split into three phases this year to accommodate the increase to 68 participating teams (37 men's and 31 women's).
The first phase (7-10 July) sees 22 men's teams and 15 women's teams from lower-ranked countries battle it out to secure five (men's) and four (women's) qualifying spots in Phase 2.
Phase 2 (11-13 July) is when both Great Britain teams come in, and the draw on Thursday evening will be crucial. GB men are among the top four seeds at this stage, so will avoid Netherlands, Sweden and Germany. However, they could land Belgium, which would be a tougher challenge than the other possibilities from pot two, Poland or Monaco.
GB men will also have to face one of Switzerland, Hungary or Croatia from the third seeded pot, plus one of the qualifiers from Phase 1.
Only the four group winners progress to the third phase, called The Final 8, later in the year, where big guns Spain, Italy, France and Portugal await them.
Former Wimbledon junior doubles winner Farquharson said: "My experience from tennis has taught me to focus on the process, so I haven't dug too much into studying the draw.
"The most important thing is everyone being fit and ready to play those tough matches and support each other. As long as we've got everyone coming together, fit and competing to their best of their ability, we'll do well, whoever we're drawn against."
I'm really looking forward to it. It's quite a big moment to play for GB for the first time
Team GB's preparation for Madrid has been incredibly thorough. Both teams joined their Dutch counterparts for a training camp in Houten, Netherlands and most team members then played in the FIP Silver Utrecht tournament. Farquharson and GB team-mate Sam Jones reached the last 32.
The team then headed to Madrid a week early to train, bond and acclimatise in what will be sweltering conditions inside the 17-court Padel G24 arena. "The forecast is around 35C so it's going to take some getting used to," said Farquharson. "With that sort of heat, it'll be super fast. It's going to be a super intense week."
The Briton added: "I'm really looking forward to it. It's quite a big moment to play for GB for the first time. Hopefully I'll get to play for them a bit more in the future as well."
Farquharson, 33, isn't the only debutant in the men's team. Spain-based Jamie Lobo and Denmark-based Scot Alex Lochlan are also pulling on the national jersey for the first time.
Co-captain of the GB men's team is Tom's elder brother Sandy, with whom he runs The Padel School. As well as being business partners, Sandy is also Tom's long-time personal tennis and padel coach.
"The dynamic of us working together is not new, so we haven't talked too much about it," says Tom. "We'll just go out there and take each match as it comes."
Like Farquharson, GB women's player Hanna Maddock has tried not to concern herself with Thursday night's Phase 2 draw.
GB's women are in the second pot of seeds, so are guaranteed to face one of the top-seeded nations in their group; either Sweden, Netherlands, Germany or Denmark; plus either Estonia, Hungary, Poland or Lithuania, as well as one of the four qualifiers from Phase 1.
"We could be unlucky and get a harder draw, but it's not something for us to think about until the time comes," says Lanzarote-based Maddock. "We've prepared extremely well and if we play well, regardless of who it's against, we'll have chance."
Maddock returns to the national team this year after missing last year's Euros in Sardinia due to injury. She joins regulars Aimee Gibson, Catherine Rose, Tia Norton, Lisa Phillips and Abigail Tordoff, plus 15-year-old debutante Rosie Quirk and another newcomer, Laura Jackson.
Maddock has stepped up her training and competitive schedule massively since the turn of the year, playing in eight FIP tournaments since March.
"Raising my level and ranking is a constant motivation but getting into the GB team again is definitely a big factor, because representing your country and playing in the Europeans is the highlight of the year," she commented.
"Now I'm selected, I'm training even more because I want to prove that they made the right decision in selecting me!"
We will have in-depth coverage of the 2025 FIP Euro Padel Cup on here on the LTA Padel website, including daily results, reports and player interviews.
