Following an intense week of competition, with 102 nations playing across various locations in Europe, France and Bulgaria made history in their own way. The French boys’ team won the Valerio/Galea Cup for the sixth consecutive time, while the girls from Bulgaria won the Reina/Soisbault Cup for the first time ever.
BOYS
“Chapeau bas, la France!” What an incredible week for this national team! Who would have thought the French would be able to reproduce last year’s performance? Let’s quickly remember what happened in 2021: France had 9 wins from 9 matches at the final rounds, marking the first time in more than 20 years that a team had claimed a title in such a spectacular way.
This year, we again witnessed an incredible success. France qualified for the finals easily, being the only team in their group with zero losses. The first day was challenging, as both Luca Van Assche and Gabriel Debru had to go through three sets to win their matches against the Polish players. Day 2 proved to be easier for the French, with quick victories against Slovakia. For the final matches, France faced Belgium and their jobs were far from easy. Against Gilles Arnaud Bailly, 2021 Roland Garros champion Luca Van Assche lost the first set. Still, he found the power to turn the tide and win 3-6 6-3 6-2. His compatriot Arthur Fils went through a similar scenario with Alexander Blockx. The Belgian player won the first set rapidly, 6-2. Even so, he couldn’t keep the advantage as Arthur’s ambition to win that trophy at home came to light. With a score of 2-6 7-5 6-1, Les Bleus were declared winners.
Bulgaria played Round Robin in the qualifying round and finished first, just ahead of top seeds Slovakia. Even though they didn’t have any 3-0 wins, the team fought hard until reaching the finals in Granville.
Day 1 came with a victory against Hungary, where Denislava Glushkova beat Anna Kantor in a quick manner, 6-3 6-2. Even though her compatriot Mihaela Tsoneva lost her match, they made a great team during the doubles match, securing their position with a 6-2 6-1 victory.
The second day looked very similar for the Bulgarians. Mihaela, facing Czech Julie Struplova played tiebreaks in both sets, but she didn’t manage to win either one of them. Even so, the team revealed its power once again while playing doubles. They claimed victory against the draw’s favorite Czech Republic, 6-3 6-1.
The final stage found Mihaela Tsoneva more confident and powerful. She obtained the first win for the team against Slovak Nina Vargova, 6-3 6-4. Meanwhile, Denislava looked as if she was breezing through her match too, leading 3-0 in the second set. However, she was very close to losing the advantage, as Nikola Daubnerova (SVK) almost evened the score in a very intense and long game. The Bulgarian resisted the pressure, bringing the decisive triumph for the national team.
Final Standings
BOYS
- France
- Belgium
- Czech Republic
- Slovakia
- Serbia
- Spain
- Bulgaria
- Poland
GIRLS
- Bulgaria
- Slovakia
- Italy
- Czech Republic
- Spain
- Poland
- France
- Hungary