The Robert Abdesselam Trophy returns to France

The 10th edition of the Robert Abdesselam Trophy took place from 21-23 August and brought together four international teams — Spain, Belgium, Great Britain, and France — for a competition featuring one Women’s Doubles, one Men’s Doubles, and two Mixed Doubles per match.

The French team prepared with great professionalism, with some high-altitude training in the Vercors Mountains. There, the players enjoyed scenic hikes through historic forest trails, breathtaking views over Grenoble, and, most importantly, an intensive tennis camp led by their long-time coach, Bruno Delorme, at the Villard-de-Lans Tennis Club. Off the courts, the group took time to share meals and test their culinary skills, further strengthening team spirit and camaraderie.

On arrival in Avignon, the competitors faced stormy weather. The French delegation managed a short training session on the superb courts of TC Montolivet before heavy rain rendered the grounds unplayable. The club’s President, Jean-Pierre Azam, and his wife Gisèle extended a warm welcome to all participants, their passion and dedication keeping the Avignon club thriving.

Due to the weather, the opening matches were held indoors on a single court instead of the planned four outdoor ones. Consequently, the format was shortened to a single set of six games with a tie-break at 6-6. France started the tournament strongly, defeating Great Britain — a new permanent participant in this long-standing competition — by 4–0 in the morning session. Spain then overcame Belgium in the afternoon.

The following day saw the return of sunshine, allowing play to resume outdoors for the France–Belgium encounter. Despite gusty conditions, France prevailed 3–1. In the afternoon, players and guests enjoyed a guided cultural visit to the Chartreuse de Villeneuve-lès-Avignon, a monastic complex renowned for its austere order and beautiful architecture.

The evening’s social programme featured a warm reception hosted by Odile de Roubin in her elegant family residence, where players gathered for an aperitif before the official dinner — a highlight of the event’s convivial atmosphere.

The final day brought the much-anticipated showdown between France and Spain. The French team were eager to reclaim the Robert Abdesselam Trophy, which had been in Spanish hands since the 2023 edition in Madrid.

The opening women’s doubles match proved challenging: Spain’s pair, Pauline Rodriguez (a former French player ranked no. 15) and Noelia Perez Penate (former WTA no. 121), showed their experience, while France’s Isabelle Billard-Delage sustained an early injury. Fortunately, the French men responded with a narrow win, leaving the teams level at one match apiece.

It was therefore down to the two mixed doubles to decide the title (and avoid a super tie-break in the event of two tied teams after all the matches). The French pairs — Chantal Grimal & Alain Moracchini, and MarieDo Larras & Nicolas Fourcade — made an excellent start, taking their first sets 6–1 and 6–0 respectively. Grimal and Moracchini secured their victory swiftly, while Larras and Fourcade were pushed into a deciding tie-break after their Spanish opponents, Noelia Perez Penate and Fernando Gomes de Segura, fought back to win the second set 6–4. The final tie-break was a thrilling affair, keeping spectators — including loyal French supporters Pascale and Christine — on edge. In the end, the French pair held their nerve to win 11–9, sealing overall victory for France.

The Robert Abdesselam Trophy thus returned to France, to the delight of players, organisers, and supporters alike — a fitting conclusion to three days of high-level tennis, sportsmanship, and international friendship.

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Virtual AGM and Executive Committee Meetings

Both Executive Committee meetings and the IC AGM for 2020 still took place on their usual weekends but like everyone in the world, things were a bit different and they were held virtually over zoom. However, all three meetings were efficient and successful – key takeaways shown below.

Sunday 31st May 2020 – Executive Committee Meeting

• The Chairman reported that Rafael Nadal has graciously accepted the IC Jean Borotra CQS Sportsmanship Award. The granting ceremony is still to be re-arranged.
• Finances and IC Philanthropy update and discussion
• Events – all cancelled (some subsequently) due to Covid-19
• Alumni networks – work has commenced to build up a network for the Potter Cup and IC Junior Challenge participants, who can be convened closer to the IC Community, strengthening our network of active members

Sunday 5th July 2020 – IC Annual General Meeting

• 59 participants in attendance

• Business Returns 2019 – 38 out of 42 ICs responded to the survey. The 2019 IC Business Report can be found here.

• Executive Committee recommend that ICs work together regionally to support and learn from one another through Covid-19 – starting with zoom meetings in smaller groups

• The Chairman and Executive Committee expressed their immense gratitude to Julian Tatum, a longstanding member of the Executive Committee who has been instrumental for decades in many important initiatives

• The following slate of candidates was presented for election to the Executive Committee:
  a. Thierry Pham, Permanent Member (France)
  b. Alex Kurucz (Europe)
  c. Des Shaw (Australasia)
  d. Philippe Pinet (replacing Gustavo Herrero) for South America Regional Representative
  e. Kit Spencer (Events)

• Finances update – full update can be found in the minutes section, in the members login area

• IC Rod Laver Junior Challenge Worldwide Finals – postponed to 2021

• The Professional Game – work being carried out by the ICs of Australia (Beyond the Tour initiative) and the United States (Career Supportive Initiative) to assist active and retiring tour players in their post-play careers and lives. Further information can be found at www.beyondthetour.com.au and on Facebook @BTTIC.

• IC Philanthropy - Since inception in 2010, in excess of 15,000 disadvantaged or disabled children and young people have attended and benefitted from the ICP Foundation’s programmes. The ICP Foundation is supporting 14 programmes again in 2020, that are in different stages of activity, due to the pandemic

Sunday 8th November 2020 – Executive Committee Meeting

• Finances and the impact of Covid-19. A full update can be found in the minutes section, in the members login area
• Events update – including rescheduling fixtures, the impact on the IC Rod Laver Worldwide Junior Challenge Finals (postponed to November 2021), and the proposal for a younger IC Council event
• Business returns - the EC agreed that next year, the business returns questionnaire would not be distributed and collected for each IC, given this unique year and halt of IC activity. Although, Regional Representatives will continue to work with their ICs to support the issues raised in this year’s report
• An additional EC Meeting will be adjourned in January 2021 to focus on events for 2021 onwards