The players in the Potter Cup and Two Presidents Cup showed their commitment to the competition on a Saturday when the finals started two hours late. After 30 minutes of play, the matches were abandoned due to heavy rain and the Potter Cup Committee were unable to determine when play would resume. Play resumed at 19:00, thanks to the considerable efforts of the RC Polo Court maintenance team, who made it possible for the men’s and women’s finals to take place.
Despite the weather, the sixteen international club teams maintained the friendly atmosphere for which the competition is renowned, continuing a tradition that is now in its 51st year. Defending champions IC Spain triumphed over IC Italy 4 to 1 in a revised format of one pro set per match. IC Spain’s Roberto Menendez, a ten-time World Champion, defeated Stefano Tarallo 9-5. Lorenzo Pennisi scored the only victory for IC Italy, beating Xavier Llucia 9 to 2. In addition to Roberto, the winning Spanish team included Joaquin Muñoz, Jose M. Vicente, Xavi Llucia and Eduardo Sanz. In the women’s competition, IC Germany beat IC Italy. Manon Kruse, a former World Champion, teamed up with Gitte Muller to defeat Agnesse Zuchini and Annalise Bona of IC Italy in the singles with an easy 2-0 victory.
The event kicked off with a clinic in which players of different nationalities played alongside special guests from the Acell Federation, reinforcing the competition’s social and inclusive mission. Highlights of the social agenda included dinners at RCTB-1899 and an official dinner at RC Polo. During the latter, Mr Marco Gilardelli, President of the Competition, and Mr Carlos Homedes, President of the Tennis Section of RC Polo, honoured Tournament Director Berta Tintoré for her contributions as she plans to retire this year.
The tournament benefited from the support of several organisations, including the Catalan Tennis Federation, two Centenary Clubs as the Real Club de Polo de Barcelona and the RCTB-1899, Ajuntament de Barcelona, Lexus, Aon, La Llave de Oro and Daryd.
