Lebron and Paquito bounce back: "A victory that boosts confidence"

Finally, Paquito Navarro and Juan Lebron raise their voices. After a debut at the Foro Italico with more shadows than highlights, the two Spaniards reached the quarter-finals at the BNL Italy Major with a performance worthy of their names, sweeping Victor Ruiz and Lucas Bergamini aside in 50 minutes with a 6-1 6-2 scoreline that speaks for itself. They dominated from the first to the last ball, banishing the ghosts of Tuesday. "It was a much better match," said Lebron, "and Paquito played brilliantly. It gives us great confidence for tomorrow, to try to improve even more." In the quarter-finals, they will face a derby against Momo Gonzalez and Alex Ruiz, who recently reached the final in Bordeaux, winning 7-5 7-6 against the Argentinians Capra/Chozas.

"I'd be insincere," added Paquito, "if I said that our goal was to achieve the results we've had so far. We came back to play together to aim for titles, so it's clear we need to do more. I hope this tournament can help us show all our potential and turn our season around. My relationship with Rome is fantastic: I've played two finals here and would love to reach a third with Juan, and maybe win it. Before the end of my career, I want to triumph here at least once".

"Our goal," said Lebron again, "is to regain the good feelings of our first period together. So far, the results haven't come, and I feel responsible for not yet being able to allow Paquito to play at his best level, but I'm sure we will make it sooner or later." Finally, the most awaited confirmation from the two for our home crowd: they will be in Genoa for the P2 tournament, along with many other top players who have recently populated the entry list. "It's in Italy, we can't miss it." And if Paquito says so...