VILLENA/STARNBERG, March 23, 2025 (Via Press Release)
This Sunday, the new champions of the ITF World Tennis Tour J300 Villena – Memorial Eduardo Ferrero were crowned. Spain’s most prestigious international U18 tournament concluded its 25th edition with two high-intensity finals. The crowd supported the players, motivating them to showcase their best level despite the physical and mental exhaustion of competing in such a demanding event. The challenge was further intensified by rain delays in the early days, which forced players to double up on matches due to the disrupted schedule.
Men’s final: Alexander Vasilev triumphs
The men’s final kicked off with an incredibly tight contest. The high level of both players was evident in the evenly matched first set. With the score tied at 6-6, Moroccan Karim Bennani surged ahead 5-1 in the tiebreak. However, Bulgarian Alexander Vasilev, a relative of Grigor Dimitrov, fought back to level the score at 5-5. He completed his comeback with an ace on the 20th point of the tiebreak, taking the set 7-6(11-9). The intensity of the first set took a toll on Bennani, who suffered a physical and mental dip in the second set. Vasilev seized the momentum and dominated to close out the match 7-6, 6-1, joining a prestigious list of past champions that includes Carlos Alcaraz, Andrey Rublev, Giovanni Mpetshi, and Alejandro Davidovich—a promising sign for his future.
Women’s final: Charo Esquiva claims victory
The women’s final started with an impressive performance from Spain’s Charo Esquiva. Latvian Beatrise Zeltina initially struggled but managed to recover from a 0-4 deficit imposed by the Alicante-born player. However, Esquiva held firm, closing out the set 7-5 in a much tighter contest than expected. With the match more balanced than at the start, Esquiva’s competitive edge proved decisive as she wrapped up a 7-5, 6-3 victory.
“This is just the beginning, but I’m really happy to compare myself with these players. We keep working step by step,” Esquiva stated after the match, acknowledging that several top WTA players—Paula Badosa, Daria Kasatkina, and Diana Shnaider (currently ranked 11th, 12th, and 13th in the WTA rankings)—had also played in the final of this tournament in previous years.
Emotional trophy ceremony
The award ceremony was attended by Antonio Martínez Cascales, coach of Juan Carlos Ferrero and founder of the Ferrero Academy, Maite Gandía, the Sports Councilor, and Francisco Vicent, President of the Tennis Federation of the Valencian Community.
The tournament is named Memorial Eduardo Ferrero in honor of Juan Carlos Ferrero’s father, who passed away during the 20th edition of this event. In an emotional moment for the Ferrero family and the Academy, the champions received their trophies from Laura Ferrero, Juan Carlos Ferrero’s daughter.
