London Premier Padel P1: Christian Medina Murphy into second round at Olympia
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British No.1 Christian Medina Murphy kept home hopes alive at the inaugural London Premier Padel P1 after securing a first-round victory at Olympia.
In a bumper opening day that saw six British wild cards in action in West Kensington, it was the 27-year-old from Kingston-upon-Thames who was able to book his place in the second round.
Medina Murphy (world No.173) and long-term playing partner Alberto Garcia Jimenez rounded off the day’s action on Centre Court with a commanding 6-2, 6-2 victory over Agustin Gutierrez and Santino Giuliani Lombardo.
Speaking after the win, Medina Murphy said, “I’m so happy to win our first match here.
“It’s not like a normal win because in the last few games our rival was a bit injured, but I’m happy to show our level to the home crowd and I’m excited to be here again.”
The British, Spanish pair will now face the in-form all-Argentine pairing of Juan Tello and Maximiliano Arce Simo in the second round on Wednesday 5 August.
Elsewhere, British No.2 Louie Harris produced a strong performance on his Premier Padel debut alongside Francisco Jurado Sosa. Harris was originally due to partner compatriot Alex Loughlan, who was forced to withdraw from the event after sustaining an injury.
The Brit - ranked No.272 in the FIP rankings - and Jurado Sosa faced a stern test in the form of world No.44 Javier Ruiz Gonzalez and world No.95 Santiago Jose Pineda Cabello, and eventually bowed out in a 6-2, 6-2 defeat.
Despite the loss, Harris was grateful for the opportunity to compete on the Premier Padel stage in his home country, “Playing in London in front of a home crowd was a really special experience.
“The atmosphere was incredible, and I’m proud to have been part of this historic moment. Congratulations to Pineda Cabello and Ruiz Gonzalez on the win.”
Fellow British wild cards, Chris Salisbury and Alfonso Patacho, ranked No.718 and 874 respectively, threatened a second set comeback against top 100 stars Ignacio Piotto Albornoz and Juan Cruz Belluati before losing out 6-2, 6-4.
The all-British duo admitted that nerves got the better of them, but credited the home crowd at Olympia for raising their beliefs, “We got the crowd up and we started to believe. Trouble is, that’s when the nerves come back a bit.
“I’m pleased we fought as hard as we could and there were some great points. I’m disappointed that we didn’t make that second set longer, but proud and happy after the experience.”
On the women’s side, British No.1 and No.2 Aimee Gibson and Catherine Rose produced a stunning performance against top 40 stars Ksenia Sharifova and Alix Collombon, but ultimately fell short 6-1, 7-6(5).
Sharifova and Collombon won 100% of points on serve in the opening set and made the most of their chances on the return to take the lead. However, the British duo managed to turn it around in the second to force a tie-break but it was the higher-ranked pair who raised their level to eventually prevail.
You can keep up with all the latest results from the London Premier Padel P1 at Olympia below:
