In this episode of the Functional Tennis Podcast, host Fabio Molle interviews Pol Toledo, coach of Paula Badosa, discussing her journey, training methodologies, and challenges on the WTA Tour. Pol shares insights into his coaching philosophy, the impact of statistical analysis, and the importance of mental resilience in elite tennis. He also reflects on his transition from player to coach, his longstanding relationship with Badosa, and the challenges of managing injuries and performance on the tour.

5 Key points

• Smart Post-Match Analysis – Pol gives Paula time before reviewing matches, using video and stats to refine strategies.
• Data-Driven Training – They analyze key stats, focusing on serve +1 shots and improved return positioning.
• Technical Enhancements – Pre-season work includes specialized tools (Saber racket, elastic bands) to sharpen footwork and shot power.
• Mental Strength & Adaptability – Paula quickly applies coaching advice, with a strong focus on confidence and communication.
• Injury Management – Overcoming back issues taught her to understand pain, adjust training, and stay competitive.

I hope you enjoy

Fabio

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Welcome to the Functional Tennis Podcast.

I'm your host, Fabio Molle, bringing you insights and lessons from players, coaches, parents and experts deeply rooted in the world of high level tennis. Today I'm chatting to Pol Toledo, coach of Paula Badosa.

Paul has known Paula since they were kids, played on the tour himself, and for the past three years has been part of Paula's team. He shares valuable insights into his coaching journey and what it's like working alongside Paula at the top level.

But before we dive in, a quick shout out to our podcast partners, Asics to shoe a choice at functional Tennis. And for countless professional and amateur players around the world, tennis is all about fine margins.

And the right shoe can give you that extra edge while providing the trust you need in your movement. Okay, here's Pol. Pol, welcome to the Functional Tennis Podcast. How are you?

Thank you, Fabio. For me, it's a pleasure to be here.

You are doing an amazing job, you know, as I told you in Australia, and for me, I, I'm really happy to, to share this podcast with you.

It's not about me, it's about you. You're doing a great job with Paul. Results have been, you know, good lately and we were meant to record this last week.

So I'm sitting at my table, ready to go. It was 3pm, my time was a lot later. 2pm, can't remember a bit later your time. And I'm like, okay. I was like, I just messaged Paul.

See, everything's okay. Message you. Then I checked Instagram and somebody had sent me a video of the point point with Sabalenka was a good point.

And then I was like, okay, that must have been earlier. And then wait, I messaged the guy and I was like, is that now? And he goes, yeah, that's right now I'm like, oh no.

So then I messed you and said, look, take your time, but tell me about last week. Intense match. You had a few match points.

Yeah, it was a good tournament. Pa played well the first two matches. Then we lost that of match with. With Elena always. She.

They play really good matches together and yeah, six match points. Really tough, tough one. But Paul is playing well. It's competing every match and that's important for, for her.

Yeah, no, it's definitely. And then you need a few hours to. I think I said Sabalenka Mendelena. But then you need a few hours to. Yeah. Unwind and oh yeah, I can imagine it's.

What is the time like after a match actually whether, let's say you lose a Match the next few hours. Do you interact with Paula or do you do your own thing? I know every player is different but how it work for you you guys?

Yeah, for.

For us I give her a time after a match like like this because to speak and like after the match directly interior with maybe you you are saying like things like in a. In a hot way, you know. And yeah we we had some times next next day we spoke about the match.

What Paul Adita did did well what we we need to to improve in. In the practice this week for the next tournament because every week you have a chance to to compete again.

And yeah normally we speak about the match on the next day in the tournament. If she won that match, we are playing next day. So you you spoke during the the night.

But yeah, we spoke the next day and we we like watching some videos what what we need to improve in during the matches.

So you're taking the action from the master get you. Okay. We need to work on these things and you're back in the practice court working on on those few things. Hoping next time it comes together.

Sure sure. And also we have a one. One guy in our team that it's helping us with the stats.

So also we work in that on the maybe one day in the first serves, winning second serves, where we are missing more depends of which zone we are playing better. Everything helps in that level and everything. It's important.

Yeah, it's only small. It's only a point here and there makes the difference.

Obviously you have to do the work to get to that point and then it's like okay, can you execute when the opportunity arrives?

Yeah, true. Yeah Yeah. I I was not working I mean when I was playing with stunts. But Paula told me when, when I started with Paola because I was.

I was playing before so I was without experience in. In that level. And I really like it because you can take so many things about stats about.

But also about the Paola stats because it's not everything with. With your opponent. You know. And in precision we work a lot on our stats and it really helps us. Yeah.

And yeah. How do you define what's her stats? Obviously you can get stats on everything now so you can get information overload.

And so do you guys just pick a few stats to concentrate on and that's your. They're your metrics then.

Yeah. Look for me last year, I mean I spoke with our guy and I I tried to what I I was thinking that we had to. To work a lot.

I asked them for what Was what we was doing worse than the other. The top players, you know, so maybe the serve. Serve plus one. It's important for Paola that we had to improve because Paula is really consistent.

You know, she has a really good shots on the baseline, but also maybe when she was playing, good shot, when she was hitting the next shot. Because what we try to improve is to go. To not move only in the baseline, like in front and now on back and.

And yeah, that's on the return too, because she was returning like on the. Far away from the baseline and we was trying to. To go for it in the second set of the opponents. So. Yeah. Is that what we try to improve?

And it works sometimes, but takes time. Yeah.

It doesn't work for everybody all the time. It's impossible. So, yeah, you're evolving. So you're just. Week on week, you're evolving. And tell me you are going to. I have to mention this now.

You mentioned preseason. I saw you guys hitting with the wooden spoon during preseason, which I was quite interested. Then you guys got a saber.

Did you use the saber in preseason?

We use the saber a lot in the first two weeks, yeah.

Why?

Because Paula has very good shots. But on the. I work a lot on. On Paula's forehand for the saber, because sometimes what I work with Paola is his footwork because sometimes she's.

Now not. Not that much, but she was going like up and the racket was opening, you know, So I work the.

The impact of the ball with the forehand and the first two weeks because, as you know, we don't have a lot of weeks of precision. The calendar is so, so busy. So we work a lot on.

With the Savage and with elastics on his legs, her legs to go to stay low, you know, so we work a lot with Savage and with the elastics first since I arrived with Paolo since then. And for me, I feel a lot of difference in his. Not backhand, because backhand is like a natural shot, you know, but with the fourth hand. Yes.

Yeah, that's so. So it did help.

Yeah, did help a lot. Yeah, sure.

Okay. Conversation closed.

Look, everybody has natural shots, you know, and then the saber is not, you know, I think coaches use it to find an area they need it on, and then the coach tries to make it work that way. So I'm really happy to hear that. Thank you very much. But let's. You're a young lad. You're not, you're a young coach, you.

But you played on the tour for a while and maybe tell Me, how did tennis being for you? And do you know Paula since she's a younger player?

Yeah, look, I was playing like on a challenger level. I was not the ranking as Paula has. I was like 300, 400. But I know Paula since we grew up together. I mean, with eight, nine years.

We had the same coach. He passed away in Fernandi. And yeah, look, I stopped to play tennis three years ago. I started with Paolo.

I was without experience on the coach, as you said. I'm learning every day. I was not like, I was not following the WTA Tour as now because I was playing. I didn't have that time.

So for me, this experience is to learn every day. I'm learning something about. About this, this, this tour, about. Oh, take a profit with. With Paola out. Encore. How I can speak better to Paola.

How we can improve on tennis, obviously, but also on the mind too. So, yeah, I'm young, I'm 30 years old, so I'm trying to improve every day to everything, everything I can try to be better. So just this.

So she took a big risk taking you on three years ago. No experience, obviously. You knew her a long time and she was, you know, she was. Well, I'm not sure what her ranking was three years ago.

She was probably. Was she top 10 three years ago? No, no, no, no.

When I started with her, she was like 26. But she. Okay, at third week she was injured. So what for one year was not a good start.

Okay. You're like, oh, no, what did I do? But go back. So the coach you both worked under unfortunately passed away was Marcelo Ray. Is that his name?

And what made him such a special.

Coach for me and for Paolo? He was like our dad. I mean, I grew up, I played tennis all my life with him. Paula too. And he, he had a very.

He was very good on coaching, but also with treating us, he was very calm. And I think Paulo with me had had a very similar feeling because I'm really calm. I'm similar on Marcelo, so.

But yes, this, this thing is something that can, for us, it's like a different feeling to, to have Marcelo here. It will be amazing.

Yeah, but you obviously, you learned from him, so. Yeah. So you're trying to, you know, I won't say give the same vibe, feel as he did. And she feels comfort in that.

Yeah, yeah, look, Marcelo was like, I remember, you know, I think you know Danilo, the Samsonova's coach.

Yeah, Pizzeria. Really nice, man. Yeah, really nice.

It's so similar of Danilo I always say we're always talking about that with Paola, when we saw Danilo, Danilo is like Marcelo and it's so similar. Marcelo loves the technique like Danilo. As I watch in the video of Danilo, I don't know, but he's so similar of Marcelo. Yeah.

Danilo was telling me he has about, I can't remember, 30 or 40,000 videos of players. He used to travel around Italy and also sorts to get videos of juniors. And he just has, he's such a good collection of videos.

He's the original video taker because every now and again he comes out with some players and pros now when they were juniors, and I was like, how do you have them? So, yeah, no, he's really good. And I only got to meet him the first time in January. I knew him online, but met him in January.

And he's so nice, so soft, you could say gentle and soft. Like really nice.

Really nice. Yeah. Here Danilo is really nice. And in the tour, the people, the coaches, players are really nice, they are close.

And for me it was, it surprised me a lot because they are really, really humble. And yeah, I love it.

What are a few things, though? A few things you've learned from, you know, from the past three years of working with a top at lead that surprise you?

For me, what surprised me of, of Paula is that what, what I can say to Pa. She will do it for sure. I mean, encore. She listen a lot.

Like when I was playing, sometimes I, I, I always say to Paolo, when I was playing, when my coach was saying something to me, I was like listening, but like with a distance, you know. And Paola, when you say something she's doing in media, so it's for me, it's what impact me a lot.

And, and what I learned is like the communication for me with Paola, what, what, what you can say, what you cannot say, how you can say.

I mean, the mind, it's so important, or the confidence you can share with her, of course, on the tennis court, but on the tennis court, I mean, after, not a lot, but after years of playing, you know, I mean, it's what for me, what I, I feel more comfortable, you know, on court because I, I know what Paola needed before I was watching a lot of videos, a lot of matches, so. But on the outside core, it was, I work a lot on that, on myself.

Nice. And is there another characteristic you see between all the players at, let's say, all the, all the top 10 players?

Is there one characteristic you see that.

They all have ambitious. I mean they are. They published obtained. And every day she wants more. She wants more competitive.

For me, what I feel in all the players that they are a lot competitive like crazy. That's what I love it. I mean, they. They die for. For win a match, you know.

And when you look back at your career, you as a person, how competitive were you?

Not. Not like them. Not like them in Encore, like. Like a coaches.

But on Cora was not like when you are watching on tv, I mean, you always say so they have everything. They are top 10 like best hotels, best clubs, best conditions. But when you are here on tour, you saw that like they. They love tennis. They.

They won, they practice like crazy. They doing recovery a lot of hours. They leaving for tennis. And that's what. What I love of. Of them. Yeah. Of these players, where do you think.

That competitiveness comes from is. Are they born with it or is it something that. That can come as you age?

Both of these two things. Some. Someone born with. With this spirit and. And someone's. They are with the age are getting easier.

So you think you can get it. We can be nurtured like over the years you can become competitive.

Yeah. Working on you. Yeah, for sure.

Yeah. It's such a good skill to have because once you're competitive, it doesn't matter what you're playing. Like if you have a bad day, you can still win.

If you're not competitive, your bad day, your mind's out of it and you're gone.

Sure. For sure. And in tennis you have a lot of bad days. I mean, feeling good playing tennis. I don't know. Every player is different.

But I was speaking about this with Paola. She told me five days in Naira. I'm feeling like amazing playing tennis. So the other day you have to fight with. You fight with the opponent.

I mean, tennis, it's great sport, but it's tough one. So yeah, to be a competitive, you have to play with a lot of things against you during the match.

Even at a recreational level. You know, we all have our own level, but yeah, the same. It's rare. You play, come off the court and go. Everything just worked. You played great.

As it's probably you only have five days a year as well. So it's. It's absolutely crazy. And what about. How do you deal with like challenge? What are the biggest challenges for you? Traveling?

How many weeks a year do you.

Travel in with Paolo? I'm traveling all the weeks. Yeah, all the weeks. And we are living in Dubai. So Yeah, I mean, I was thinking about when I started about this.

I mean, all the weeks I. It was like, maybe I will. We will kill each other, you know, but no, we have a really good relationship. It's easy for us to.

To like, travel together on the weeks to practice. Obviously we fight a little bit, but it's normal. We have a lot of confidence between us. We have also in our team the Paula's manager that she.

She also grow up with with us and with Marcelo too. So, yeah, for me, Paola loves to has like this. I mean, this. This close team. She feels comfortable there. And. And yeah, I.

I travel all the weeks, but for me it's not, not, not.

It's a young man's game.

Yeah. I love this sport and I love when to. To. To watch Paola improving and growing up on. On the ranking and. Yeah.

And one thing I never got from you. Where. Where in Spain did you grow up?

Yeah, in. In Girona.

In Girona. Okay. And do you miss Knock on. Do you miss not being in Girona? Do you miss friends, family? It sounds like you.

It sounds like you're working with your friends between. I think it's Cloudy. Is it the agent and Palad, they're your friends, so it sounds like you're traveling with your friends, so it's not as bad.

No, no, that's for sure. We know how to separate things. I mean, when I. When we are on. We outside on. On the.

On the club, we are friends, but when we are encore or we are working, it's another. Another thing. But yeah, of course I miss Girona, but when I. In the Europe swing, I'm going there usually. So this. This start of the year also, it's.

It's tough because you. You are coming from China, pre season Australia and now Middle East, Indian Worlds, Miami. But then you start the European swing. And. And yeah, it's.

It's nice too.

And tell me, she recently reported having, you know, we've all known about her back problems where, you know, she could have quit tennis and could. It was an option. How is it. How hard is it for you as a coach where you're just stuck in limbo in a way. I'm not.

I don't know finer details, but where you're. You don't know what's going to happen. It must be extremely difficult. Mentally.

It was really difficult. We was controlling first the injury after your. The recovery, and then you start to play on court, controlling every detail.

She was feeling the pain again. We was on going back on on the pain doctors, at least they didn't know what to do because we go with three, four, the best doctors.

And they was like, this will work. And then she was with pain again. She was resting two weeks pain again. And she, she, she get an infiltration first.

First thing I think was in February and second in April after Rome and after Rome everything changed. I mean she's, she is playing now she knows better her body.

I mean when you have this type of injuries and you feel something, you are scared, you know, you have, I mean, insecurities. Maybe I'm, I'm having again the same injury and she knows now she knows better her body.

I mean she knows sometimes she's playing with, with pain now, but she knows that it's, it's normal.

I reckon most players play with some sort of pain all the time. For sure.

Yeah, you, you can see this sport, it's crazy. You play a lot of weeks, it's like you never stop. You're playing here in Mexico this week. You are going to Indian Wells.

Maybe different, different superficies, different balls. Maybe here is unit and Indian. Well, since I don't know, different everything.

So that, yeah, it's tough for the body and of course it's or this change or it will, will be worse. Yeah.

Tell me about who wins a set, you or Paula?

Last. Last one Paola. Yes, but it was one year ago. I think now I, I can beat her.

You think now you can beat her?

Oh, I practice more.

Yeah, I love it. I love. And Tavi, a question I like to ask a lot. The more the coaches or players we see who's the boss, you or Paula?

Me? Nah. Yeah, yeah, it's what I told you in the court, what I said or what in the fitness course said. She, she's doing. She, she has character.

Of course you can see Encore. If you are saying something, she know that it's for her best, you know, so she, she listen a lot.

If you were a player again, starting off, would you like to win a slam or get 20 million cash to win a slam? When a slam. Nice. You can't buy Islam. You can't buy a slam. Yeah, no. And lastly, any, any. Well, two things.

One, we're going to end this shortly and then on Instagram we're going to share.

You're going to give some feedback on some practice videos from Paula just to get your insight because anytime we post and people absolutely love the footwork in them and be just good to get your insight, see exactly what's going on. But your final question. Like what advice do you have for young players who want to be pros?

For me, my, my advice is to first first of all enjoy tennis because sometimes with now with 10 or 12 years father's expectations, they are think overthinking. You know, so first of all to enjoy tennis, to practice the the technique, not not. Not focus only on on the scores.

You know that sometimes if you, if you win, you are the best or if you lose with 10 or 12 years, I mean with that age and they have to enjoy tennis to to. To try to. To be better for. For himself every day and, and let's see what what will will be. But for me that's the more important when you are young.

I mean no expectations to. So just focus on you.

Nice. Have fun. Okay, well, thank you very much. I hope to see you at a tournament soon over the summer.

And yeah, for those we'll be sharing some videos on Instagram of Paul talking about Paul. Thank you.

Thank you. Thank you, Fabio. Pleasure.

Ra.