Queralt Casas was clear about it from the moment the horn sounded. The captain of Valencia Basket granted the privilege of lifting the trophy to her teammate Raquel Carrera, who suffered a serious knee injury in the first match of the Queen’s Cup that will cause her to miss the end of the season with her team and also the Paris Olympic Games. The Galician center, smiling and happy, left the crutches at her side and raised the award for an impeccable performance by her team in the four days of competition.
One of the happiest players at the celebration was Alba Torrens. The Mallorcan, a 34-year-old veteran, has an exceptional record: six Euroleagues; two leagues in Spain; seven in Russia; an Olympic silver; another runner-up and two bronze medals in the World Cups; and two titles, one silver and two bronzes in the Europeans. She also won three European Super Cups and two in Spain. But she was missing one, the Queen’s Cup that she won this Sunday. Now the big question is whether one of the best players in the history of Spanish basketball will continue one more season or leave professional sport.
Rubén Burgos maintained the coldness that he does not lose even in the most tense moments. Moderate in the celebration, as he learned from his teacher, the great Yugoslavian coach Miki Vukovic -double European champion with Dorna Godella in the 90s-, explained after the final that, more than remembering the defeat against Casademont Zaragoza in the Cup last year, he thought about the great victories he has achieved this season against this team. Although, above specific details of the game, he praised the winning character of his players. “That mentality is worked on day by day,” he said.
The Valencian coach, who thanked the presence in Huelva of the club’s patron, Juan Roig, also had words of praise for the great protagonist of this Queen’s Cup: “I am especially happy for Leti, for her MVP and for the person she is. . Also because, in her first season, she suffered a very serious knee injury, but she worked hard and, as the cliché goes about her, she came back stronger physically and mentally.”
The Canarian player focused on “the energy of the team.” Romero considered that this was decisive in the final. “We have come out with things very clear in the three games. In the final we faced a very tough team like Zaragoza, who know each other very well. The key is that from the beginning we have gone all out, with everything we have, and that has allowed us to win.”
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