Toulouse. For Doumbia and Reboul, the wheel has turned
After Forli in Italy in January, the Stade Toulousain pair won the Canary Islands tournament last Saturday with success in the super tie-break final.
In doubles, players can rarely escape it: the super tie-break as a decisive round is commonplace. Sadio Doumbia (91st in the world) and Fabien Reboul (90th) know something about it.
Since mid-January and their first 2022 title won in Forli (Italy), the Stade Toulousain duo had chained six defeats in the super tie-break, including three in ATP 250 events (in a half in Pune in India, in the 1st round in Marseille and in quarter in Santiago in Chile). “In this kind of scenario, it’s often 50-50”, recall the two friends. Fortunately, last week, at the Challenger in “Gran Canaria”, the wheel finally turned in favor of the Stadistes, winning their nineteenth crown side by side. An appointment that they approached with bib N.1. “Being seeded N.1, we don’t care a bit. All the teams play well. So it’s not an advantage to have this seeded status. In doubles, everything can happen. In any case, regardless of the division in which we evolve, the process is always the same: we enter the court to win each match”, they temper.
Minnows 6 points to 4 in the final!
After three first rounds won without losing a set (including a victory after abandonment in the quarter), the Toulouse people were still hot in the final against the Italian pair Matteo Arnaldi-Luciano Darderi. “We knew it was going to be tough against these two very talented youngsters. In the super tie-break, we lead 4-2. Then they had the advantage 6-4. But we won 10 points at 7. On arrival, we are really happy to have been able to reverse the situation. Overall, we played a good match. Concerning our previous defeats, on the spot, there is therefore disappointment, especially for those on the main circuit. But we retain a lot more positive. We know that we have the level to be on these ATP tournaments and beat very good teams. We play better than last year. We hope continue to progress”, underline the Stadistes who have reached, for the moment, their best ATP ranking.
“Roland-Garros? We don’t think about it”
Beyond the game, Toulouse can also count on a physique that leaves them rather quiet. “There are sometimes small sores. But nothing serious. Admittedly, it is not always easy to continue with travel. Nevertheless, we remain vigilant about recovery”, they assure.
This week, Sadio and Fabien are still on the Challenger circuit with a stopover in Monterrey (Mexico; they were to play in the quarterfinals yesterday). Rebelote next week in the United States for the Phoenix Challenger. Is Roland-Garros already on their minds? The response fuses: “We don’t think about it. Moreover, currently, we do not have the sufficient ranking to enter the table.” Everything in its time.