Kuwait Major: Libaak and Alfonso Topple Lebrón and Augsburger

The round of 16 at the Premier Padel Kuwait Major turned into one of the most turbulent days of the season on Wednesday, 28 October. Three seeded pairs were knocked out at The Arena Kuwait, among them the second seeds Juan Lebrón and Leandro Augsburger, who fell 4-6, 7-5, 6-1 to the Argentine duo Valentino "Tino" Libaak and Gonzalo Alfonso.

With Alejandro Galán and Federico Chingotto already out of the tournament through Galán's injury, the draw had looked wide open for Lebrón and Augsburger. Instead, the men's draw has now lost its three highest-ranked challengers to world No. 1s Arturo Coello and Agustín Tapia.

Libaak and Alfonso turn the match around

Lebrón and Augsburger took the opening set 6-4 and seemed in control. Libaak and Alfonso, however, raised their intensity in the second set, steadily finding attacking options and pressuring their opponents' defence. Spanish outlet PadelSpain noted that the Argentines found "in the second and above all in the third set, the spaces that had resisted them" earlier in the match. They edged the second set 7-5 before running away with the decider 6-1, helped by a string of unforced errors from the Spanish-Argentine pair.

Libaak was particularly effective, combining solid defence with clinical finishing, while Alfonso took on the more aggressive work from the back of the court. Their reward is a quarter-final against Martín Di Nenno and Francisco "Paquito" Navarro, who were barely tested in a 6-3, 6-0 win over Pol Hernández and Castaño.

Nieto and Yanguas also out, Sintes and Zamora make history

The third seeds followed Lebrón and Augsburger out of the door. Jorge "Coki" Nieto and Miguel Yanguas dominated the first set 6-1 against Jairo Bautista and Lucas Bergamini, but lost the next two 6-4, 6-2. Seeded pair Javier Leal and Francisco Guerrero were also eliminated, beaten 6-4, 6-4 by Aimar Goñi and Eduardo Alonso.

The story of the day may well belong to Marc Sintes and Zamora. After knocking out eighth seeds Momo and Campagnolo in the previous round, the young pair beat Alejandro Ruiz and Javier García 6-3, 7-5. According to PadelAddict, at 20 and 18 years old and with a combined ranking of 38, they became the youngest and lowest-seeded pair in history to reach the quarter-finals of a Major.

Coello and Tapia cruise on

At the top of the draw there was no drama. Arturo Coello and Agustín Tapia needed only around 50 minutes to beat Goenaga and Guillermo Collado 6-2, 6-1. Franco Stupaczuk and Jon Sanz beat Iñigo Jofre and Juanlu Esbrí 6-2, 7-5, and Juan Tello and Maximiliano Arce needed three sets to get past Perino and Domínguez, 6-3, 3-6, 6-1.

Kuwait Major: Sánchez/Ustero and Triay/Brea Survive Semi-Final Marathons

Thursday's quarter-finals

The men's quarter-finals are played today, Thursday 29 October, with the following line-up:

Sintes/Zamora vs Tello/Arce – Court 1, from 12:00 Spanish time
Stupaczuk/Sanz vs Alonso/Goñi – Centre Court, around 14:00
Di Nenno/Navarro vs Libaak/Alfonso – Centre Court, around 16:30
Coello/Tapia vs Bautista/Bergamini – Centre Court, around 18:00

Coello and Tapia arrive in Kuwait on a winning streak that, according to PadelAddict, includes titles in Paris, Rotterdam, Düsseldorf and Milan. With Galán and Chingotto absent and the second and third seeds already gone, Bautista and Bergamini now stand between the world No. 1s and a semi-final on Friday, ahead of the final on Saturday, 31 October.