Paris Major Reaches Its Boiling Point as Padel’s Elite Fight for Glory

Photo Credit: Silvestreszpylma / Premier Padel

Prescience Media; Live from Paris. 

The Alpine Paris Major has reached its decisive stage, with eight teams remaining in the race for one of the most prestigious titles on the Premier Padel calendar.

Played at Roland Garros, the home of the French Open, the tournament carries a significance that extends beyond rankings and prize money. For six days, one of tennis’s most historic venues has been transformed into a global stage for professional padel.

Martita Ortega and Sofia Araújo produced one of the tournament’s biggest comebacks on Friday, saving five match points to defeat Perlamita and reach the semi finals.

The fifth seeds lost the opening set but responded with a composed display on Roland Garros’s slow court. They won the next two sets in tie breaks, holding their nerve when defeat appeared imminent.

The victory is particularly important for Ortega, who is competing for a place in Spain’s squad for the FIP World Cup in November. National coach Carolina Navarro will announce her eight player squad on September 24.

“I hope I can make it to the FIP World Cup. It’s a week I absolutely love, my favourite of the year,” Ortega said. “Having all the players I compete against on the same side is amazing. We all work to be called up.”

Ortega and Araújo now face third seeds Ari Sánchez and Andrea Ustero for a place in the final.

Sánchez brings extensive experience at the highest level, while Ustero has established herself as one of the emerging talents on the Premier Padel circuit. Their semi final promises a contrasting battle between experience, precision and youthful aggression.

The other women’s semi final sees top seeds Gemma Triay and Delfi Brea face Martina Calvo and Claudia Fernández.

The match is a repeat of the Pretoria Premier Padel final and gives Calvo and Fernández another opportunity to challenge one of the leading partnerships in the women’s game.

On the mens side, Paquito Navarro and Martín Di Nenno advanced after a hard fought quarter final, recovering from a set down to beat Franco Stupaczuk and Jon Sanz 4 6, 6 1, 6 4.

The victory moves Navarro and Di Nenno closer to fourth place in the rankings, currently held by Stupaczuk and Sanz.

It is also a significant improvement on their 2025 campaign, when both players exited in the opening round with different partners. Their run in Paris has already secured at least 1,260 ranking points between them.

They now face Chingotto and Galán, who defeated Navarro and Di Nenno in the quarter finals of last week’s Madrid P1.

The other men’s semi final pits world No 1s Agustín Tapia and Arturo Coello against Juan Lebrón and Leo Augsburger.

Tapia and Coello have set the benchmark at the top of the men’s game, but Lebrón and Augsburger possess the power and attacking intensity to make this a demanding test.

With a place in the Paris final at stake, neither side can afford a slow start.

The quarter finals delivered dramatic comebacks and tight finishes. The semi finals now bring together the leading contenders, with four teams set to move one step closer to lifting the Paris Major title at Roland Garros.

Semi Final Line up:

Ari Sánchez - Andrea Ustero (#3) vs Ortega - Josemaría (#5)

Agustín Tapia - Arturo Coello (#1) vs Juan Lebrón - Leo Augsburger (#3)

Gemma Triay - Delfi Brea (#1) vs Martina Calvo - Claudia Fernández (#4)

Chingotto - Galán (#2) vs Navarro - Di Nenno (#6)