At just 21 years old, Italian Giulia Dal Pozzo has made history in the sport of padel in her country. By qualifying for the quarterfinals of the BNL Italy Major in Rome, she became the first Italian player to reach this stage of a Major tournament. Premier Padel.

A historic achievement on home soil

Supported by the Foro Italico crowd, Giulia Dal Pozzo, partnered with the Spaniard Nuria Rodríguez, won her duel against the other Italian, Carolina Orsi and Patty Llaguno (Pair 12).

After winning the first set, then facing a comeback from their opponents in the second, Dal Pozzo and Rodríguez finally prevailed in a decisive tiebreak in the final set. (6-4, 0-6, 7-6)

This victory opens the doors to the quarter-finals and, above all, allows Italy to take a new step in its development on the international stage.

This success is no accident. Since the start of the season, Dal Pozzo and Rodríguez have consistently delivered solid performances against the best pairs on the circuit.

The day before, they had already caused an upset by eliminating the 7th seeds, Alejandra Salazar and Alejandra Alonso, demonstrating their ability to compete with the top players on the world circuit. (6-3, 5-7, 6-2)

The duo had also reached the quarter-finals at the Cancun stage earlier in the season, confirming a steady rise in performance.

Italy Major Rome: Giulia Dal Pozzo makes Italian padel history

Following in the footsteps of Carolina Orsi

Before Giulia Dal Pozzo, Carolina Orsi already held a special status in Italian padel. In 2023, she became the first Italian player to reach the quarterfinals of a circuit tournament. World Padel Tour.

Three years later, Dal Pozzo pushed the boundaries even further by becoming the first Italian representative to reach the Top 8 of a Major. Premier Padel, the most prestigious category on the circuit.

Ranked among the top 50 players in the world, the young Italian perfectly symbolizes the rise of padel in a country where the sport has seen spectacular growth for several years.

In the rest of the women's draw, the main contenders for the title were present.

The world's number one pair, Gemma Triay / Delfi Brea, largely dominated their round of 16 match to reach the quarterfinals.

The same scenario played out for Claudia Fernández and Sofia Araújo, who also validated their tickets without difficulty.

Finally, Tamara Icardo and Claudia Jensen continued their run, dominating clearly. the Franco-Russian pair composed of Alix Collombon and Ksenia Sharifova.

The women's quarter-finals will be played this Friday in Rome, with Giulia Dal Pozzo now expected to be one of the major local attractions of this Italy Major 2026.

Franck Binisti

Franck Binisti discovered padel at the Club des Pyramides in 2009 in the Paris region. Since then, padel has been part of his life. You often see him touring France to cover major French padel events.