By Richard Pagliaro | Sunday, November 23, 2025
Photograph credit score: Davis Cup Fb
Italian flags have been streaming like vacation lights.
Digging down deep, Flavio Cobolli delivered the final word championship present to the Italian trustworthy.
A brave Cobolli roared again to defeat Jaume Munar 1-6, 7-6(5), 7-5 clinching host Italy’s third consecutive Davis Cup championship with a 2-0 victory over Spain on the SuperTennis Area in Bologna.
Earlier, Matteo Berrettini beat Pablo Carreno Busta 6-3, 6-4 to stake Italy to a 1-0 lead and set the stage for Cobolli’s heroics finishing Italy’s Davis Cup triple crown earlier than raucous dwelling followers.
“It’s unimaginable to explain these emotions,” Cobolli mentioned. “I dreamed numerous this evening. I don’t know the way I gained as a result of the match was tight.
“Jaume performed so good. We can not lose for our nations for those who give all of what you have got in your coronary heart, I don’t know what occurred right this moment, I don’t know the place I’m, however all the things I do know is we’re world champions.”
World No. 22 Cobolli emerged as a real tennis marathon man this week.
On Friday, Cobolli saved seven match factors out-dueling Zizou Bergs 6-3 6-7(5) 7-6(15) in a pulsating victory that spanned greater than three hours to clinch Italy’s semifinal win over Belgium. That epic got here after Berrettini beat Raphael Collignon 6-3, 6-4, prompting Cobolli, who has recognized Berrettini since he was eight years outdated to comment his teammate “is sort of a brother to me.”
When Cobolli crashed one remaining forehand to shut right this moment, your entire Italian crew swarmed him like a festive household reunion.
Blown out within the opening set, Cobolli rode his fierce forehand to ignite his impressed comeback—simply two months after Munar scored a straight-sets win over the 23-year-old Italian on the Rolex Shanghai Masters.
On the SuperTennis Area, Italy bolstered its status as a tennis tremendous energy.
Photograph credit score: Davis Cup Fb
“I feel Jaume performed very nicely within the first set I used to be just a little nervous,” Cobolli mentioned. “I used to be shaky with my recreation. I checked out my bench and I discovered one thing on my physique and my coronary heart and I gave all the things for this crew. As I mentioned earlier than: I’m world champion.”
After clinching the Cup, Cobolli knelt down and kissed the court docket then arose to kiss the Italian flag on his chest embracing the most important match of his profession with ardour.
“It’s wonderful,” Cobolli mentioned. “I invite everybody that I actually need to come right this moment and my household is right here, my pals, my brother, my girlfriend. I’m simply completely satisfied. I need to rejoice with all of the crew.”
In a dramatic Davis Cup remaining each nations competed with out their champion superstars.
World No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz was sidelined with a proper hamstring damage, whereas Spanish Captain David Ferrer opted towards choosing Alejandro Davidovich Fokina reportedly as a result of world No. 14 bailing out of a Davis Cup tie earlier this season. You’ll be able to’t fault Captain Ferrer for choosing the gamers he did as all confirmed super coronary heart carrying Spain to its first Davis Cup remaining since 2019.
Wimbledon champion and world No. 2 Jannik Sinner, who led Italy to its final two Davis Cup championship, and world No. 8 Lorenzo Musetti, whose companion, Veronica, is pregnant and anticipating the couple’s second little one.
Ultimately, Italian Captain Filippo Volandri shed tears of pleasure on the pleasure his gamers confirmed this week. Italy didn’t drop a match within the quarterfinals, semifinals or remaining profitable all six singles contests.
It’s Italy’s fourth Davis Cup championship general coming almost 50 years after legendary Adriano Panatta, the one man to beat Bjorn Borg at Roland Garros twice, led the Italians to the 1976 Cup.
“It’s the third win within the row, however I’m crying and I didn’t cry for the primary one,” Volandri mentioned. “It’s unbelievable. We had numerous powerful moments even when it doesn’t seem like it.
“As a bunch we had the ability to handle this second. It was like Jannik and Musetti was right here. Solely when you have a giant crew are you able to do that unbelievable consequence. It’s unimaginable. Time to take pleasure in.”
Spare a thought for Munar and his Spanish teammates who competed with vigor all through the weekend.
The Spanish squad’s again was towards the wall down 0-1 right this moment. Munar put Spain on his shoulders and elevated in excellence in arguably his finest opening set of the season.
Flying with ardour from the primary ball, Munar blitzed Cobolli profitable six straight factors to open the second singles match.
When Cobolli threw down an obvious point-ending smash, Munar answered with an outrageous Federer-esque backhand flick over the shoulder extending the purpose and ending with a forehand winner for break level. Attacking behind a backhand return down the road, Munar blasted a backhand swing volley breaking for 2-0
One other daring backhand down the road helped Munar again up the break as he leaped excessive within the air on his approach to the crew bench with a 3-0 lead.
A shell-shocked Cobolli earned triple break level—and 5 break factors in all—in a tense fifth recreation. Munar wouldn’t yield heading off all 5 break factors and standing tall by way of a 10-minute maintain for 5-0.
It took Cobolli 31 minutes to lastly get on the board.
That was a quick reprice. Munar threw down a love maintain to grab the primary set with a loud “Vamos!”
Munar cracked 13 winners, together with some spectacular strikes, in an excellent 33-minute set. Getting proper again to work, the Spaniard drained forehand errors to begin the second set with the break.
Resetting, Cobolli got here proper again to strain within the second recreation. The Italian earned break level then a fan apparently fell in poor health within the SuperTennis Area followers resulting in a couple of nine-minute delay.
When play resumed, Munar instantly saved a break level then saved a 3rd break level. A Cobolli volley kissed the highest of the tape and slowly dribbled over on the Spaniard’s facet as he earned a fourth break level. When Munar netted a forehand, the Italian was stage at 1-all.
Neither man may threaten serve for a lot of the remainder of the set with each creating some well timed lobs to tame bother.
Serving at 5-6 to pressure the tiebreaker, Munar confronted extreme stress erasing two set factors. The Spaniard used the slick serve and volley to save lots of a 3rd set level. Dealing with a fourth set level, Munar once more serve-and-volleyed hitting a pointy backhand volley.
Denying 4 set factors, a revitalized Munar slammed successive aces to pressure the tiebreaker on the ascension.
Cobolli, a superb tiebreaker participant in 2025, instantly imposed his inside-out forehand. The Italian drilled diagonal forehand winners in succession then threw down a smash for 4-1.
Calmly awaiting the ball to drop, Cobollo crunched a bounce smash for 3 extra set factors.
On his seventh set level, Cobolli stepped in and rocketed a forehand down the road to seal the second set and leaped excessive off the court docket as if it have been a trampoline forcing the ultimate set.
In a match have been little separated the pair, Cobolli’s guts carried him by way of. Deadlocked at 5-all, Cobolli was firing his forehand with menacing intent incomes triple break level.
On his third break level, Cobolli erupted in an enormous grunt and big inside-out forehand breaking for 6-5.
With the Davis Cup gleaming over his shoulder, Cobolli flew by way of the end line serving out the match of his life with conviction with a love maintain to clinch the Cup in two hours, 56 minutes.
Matteo Berrettini d. Pablo Carreno Busta 6-3, 6-4
Matteo Berrettini opened this remaining dropping the hammer on Pablo Carreno Busta, 6-3, 6-4 to stake Italy to a 1-0 lead.
Beset by accidents lately, Berrettini solidified his standing as Davis Cup warrior.
“So happy with myself, happy with my teammates, my coaches everybody who made this remaining attainable,” Berrettini mentioned afterward. “I’m actually completely satisfied for the actual fact I’m right here.
“I attempted to take pleasure in on the market as a lot as I may. I’m actually proud, actually completely satisfied my household is right here watching. It’s a type of moments I’m gonna bear in mind the remainder of my life.”
Each Berrettini and Carreno Busta held agency till the eighth recreation.
A collection of deep returns from the Italian earned him triple break level. Focusing on his opponent’s weaker backhand wing, Carreno Busta saved two break factors.
On the third break level, Berrettini’s forehand clipped the tape and fell on the sideline. Following it ahead, Berrettini instinctively lined the crosscourt go and carved a tremendous backhand drop volley breaking for 5-3 and inciting the Italian crew to erupt with roaring help.
Berrettini served out the set at love.
The 2021 Wimbledon finalist fired six aces towards no double faults within the 35-minute opener. The heavy-hitting Berrettini hit seven extra winners—10 to three—within the first set.
Scoreboard strain and a collection of crackling Berrettini returns helped the Italian pierce the Spaniard’s serve within the ninth recreation of set two.
Down love-30, Carreno Busta tried attacking the Italian’s backhand, however Berrettini was ready and whipped a two-handed crosscourt go for triple break level.
On his second break level, Berrettini pounded a deep return proper down the center that churned on the Spaniard’s shoelaces scoring the essential break for 5-4.
Reaching again, Berrettini closed with conviction serving out the match at love and erupting with a primal scream earlier than embracing Italian captain Filippo Volandri in a bear hug.
Italian followers have been bouncing up and down as Berrettini capped an ideal 3-0 week of play in singles with out surrendering a set. Berrettini has not misplaced a Davis Cup singles match since bowing to Taylor Fritz in 2019.
The 29-year-old Rome resident, who went 5-0 in singles play serving to the Italians seize the 2024 Davis Cup, scored his eleventh consecutive Davis Cup singles victory to set the stage for teammate Flavio Cobolli to clinch the Cup.
