Salazar and Triay defend Alicante crown after spectacular three-set duel with number twos

Number ones Alejandra Salazar and Gemma Triay have successfully defended their Estrella Damm Alicante Open title after beating number two duo Ariana Sánchez and Paula Josemaría in three sets.

It was a rematch of last year's final at the Centre de Tecnificació Esportiva in Alicante, the first of the now eight times Sánchez and Josemaría have met Triay and Salazar.

Sánchez and Josemaría stunningly survived ten match points in the third set until they finally buckled, giving Salazar and Triay their third title of the season. For Salazar personally, it was her 40th title in World Padel Tour, more than any other player in the women's Circuit.

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Clash of titans

Despite Sánchez and Josemaría having finally won a final against the number ones last time out in Vigo, the story of the first set was a very similar one. Salazar and Triay set the tempo, attacked, and got several breaks without too much resistance - Ari & Paula had not created a single breaking opportunity in the whole frame, which finished 6-2 after 42 minutes.

The second set featured a flurry of breaks. From 2-1, five consecutive breaks happened, until Josemaría and Sánchez found themselves 3-5 up. They managed to close the set out with a love game, forcing a final set after winning 3-6.

Alejandra and Gemma raced out to a 5-0 lead in the third set, and victory seemed imminent, especially when the score read 0-40. Amazingly, Josemaría survived the four match points. They faced another match point the game after, but they broke service instead at the gold point. Three more match points came at 5-2, all of which were survived, and yet another at 5-3.

A total of ten tournament points would go begging, Ari and Paula breaking back twice from 5-0 down, but they were then broken on their own service to lose the final set 6-4.

Alejandra Salazar and Gemma Triay, champions of the Estrella Damm Alicante Open 2022!