The Italy Major round of 16 claimed its biggest names on Thursday. Franco Stupaczuk and Miguel Yanguas, ranked No. 6 and No. 7, exited in straight sets — the heaviest casualty of a day that also produced the tournament's standout story: an unseeded women's pair winning twice to reach the semifinals.
Jerónimo González / Lucas Campagnolo 6-4 7-6 Franco Stupaczuk / Miguel Yanguas
Ranked No. 14 and No. 21, Jerónimo González and Lucas Campagnolo arrived as clear underdogs against the No. 6 and No. 7. They won anyway, and without dropping a set.
González and Campagnolo took the first 6-4 and never ceded the initiative. The second tightened into a tiebreak, but the underdogs held their nerve to close it out 7-6 and deny Stupaczuk and Yanguas a decider. A pairing assembled to chase the season's biggest titles never settled into the controlling rhythm that has defined their best matches.
The result reshapes that section of the men's draw. Stupaczuk and Yanguas leave with their seeding looking generous in hindsight, and a quarter that should have belonged to them is now open to a side that came in with far lower expectations.
Nuria Rodríguez / Giulia Dal Pozzo 6-4 0-6 7-6 Carolina Orsi / Patricia Llaguno
Nuria Rodríguez and Giulia Dal Pozzo survived a wild swing of momentum to oust Carolina Orsi and Patricia Llaguno. After taking the opener 6-4, they were handed a bagel in the second — a 6-0 whitewash that flipped the match on its head.
The decider went all the way. Rodríguez and Dal Pozzo steadied themselves and edged a tense third-set tiebreak 7-6 to advance. For Dal Pozzo, the No. 50 and playing on home Italian soil, it was a statement win over more fancied opponents — and, as it turned out, only the first half of her day.
Nuria Rodríguez / Giulia Dal Pozzo 3-6 6-3 6-2 Sofía Araújo / Claudia Fernández
The differential here was stark. Nuria Rodríguez and Giulia Dal Pozzo, with Dal Pozzo ranked No. 50, took down the No. 6 Claudia Fernández and the No. 8 Sofía Araújo to reach the last four.
It was their second match of the day, and it followed the same script as the first: surrender ground early, then surge. Araújo and Fernández took the opening set 6-3, but the Italian-led pair answered with 6-3 and 6-2, growing more assured as the match wore on while the favourites lost their grip.
Back-to-back wins over seeded opposition make this the run of the tournament so far. Dal Pozzo and Rodríguez are into the semifinals having spent more time on court than anyone — and with nothing to lose.
Arturo Coello / Agustín Tapia 6-1 6-1 David Gala / Enzo Jensen
The world No. 1 pair did exactly what world No. 1 pairs do. Arturo Coello and Agustín Tapia dismantled David Gala and Enzo Jensen 6-1, 6-1, conceding just two games across the match.
It was a ruthless, low-effort statement — a clear signal that the top seeds intend to advance without spending energy this early in the week.
Gemma Triay / Delfi Brea 6-1 6-1 Patricia Martínez / Claudia Escacena
The women's top seeds matched the men's for efficiency. Gemma Triay and Delfi Brea needed only two one-sided sets to beat Patricia Martínez and Claudia Escacena 6-1, 6-1, never allowing the match to become a contest.
The semifinals will test whether Rodríguez and Dal Pozzo's momentum can survive a third straight upset. With the top seeds in both draws still untroubled, the danger to Coello-Tapia and Triay-Brea will have to come from somewhere unexpected.