Netherlands and Germany win deciding rubbers on World Cup opening day

By Courtsider

The Netherlands and Germany turned deciding rubbers into opening-day victories at the FIP World Cup 2026 in Doha on 2 November. Their 2-1 wins over France and Chile gave the men's group phase its closest contests, on a day when Argentina and Spain each collected all three rubbers.

For the Dutch, the decisive contribution came from Bart Van Opstal and Julian Prins. They beat Leygue/Blanqué 6-4 1-6 6-3 after France had recovered from losing the opening rubber. Sten Richters and Thijs Roper had put the Netherlands ahead; Maxime Joris and Johan Bergeron supplied the French equaliser. That left the result dependent on a third match, and the Dutch finished the job.

Germany also had to win a deciding rubber. Christian Bohenke and Nick Merten recovered from a set down against Muñoz/Campos to prevail 2-6 6-3 6-4. Agustin Reca and Matthias Wunner had won Germany's opener before Javi Valdes and Cristobal Molina brought Chile level. Germany's comeback in the last match converted that 1-1 position into a team victory.

Those narrow wins put the Netherlands alongside Argentina among the opening winners in Group A, while Germany joined Portugal among the successful starters in Group C. France and Chile began with defeats despite each taking a rubber. These were group-stage results, with the knockout places still to be settled.

Argentina defeated Australia 3-0, while Portugal recorded the same tie score against hosts Qatar. The two results gave the winners a clean opening return in rubbers, unlike the Netherlands and Germany, who each conceded one. The distinction matters in reading the first group tables: a national team's 3-0 result records three rubber wins, rather than the set score of a single doubles match.

Spain's 3-0 victory over Sweden likewise left them with a clean team score in Group B. Paraguay matched it against the United Arab Emirates, so both nations began that group with wins. In Group D, Italy beat the United States 3-0 and Brazil defeated Mexico by the same margin. Neither winning side surrendered a rubber, completing a men's programme in which the Netherlands and Germany supplied the two 2-1 results.

There was more resistance inside Spain's tie than the overall score suggests. Mike Yanguas and Aimar Goñi needed three sets to overcome Willy Slaryd and Adam Axelsson, winning 6-7 7-5 6-2. Sweden took that opening set without turning it into a rubber victory.

In the women's competition, Spain beat Germany 3-0 and Argentina defeated Chile 3-0. France came through a deciding rubber against Belgium: Lea Godallier and Clara Mansart won 6-1 6-2 to secure the 2-1 tie. Portugal also won 2-1, against the United States. Brazil, Italy, Sweden and the Netherlands completed the day's winning teams, each recording a 3-0 result.

Photo source: International Padel Federation (FIP), opening-day report.