Italy remained in their pursuit of a third consecutive Davis Cup title with a decisive win over Austria in Bologna on Wednesday, setting up a semi-final clash against Belgium.
Despite the absence of their
top players Jannik Sinner and Lorenzo Musetti, Italy dominated in front of a supportive crowd. Matteo Berrettini and Flavio Cobolli secured the singles victories.
Matteo Berrettini, a former Wimbledon runner-up, faced Jurij Rodionov in the Supertennis Arena. Despite some difficulties in the second set, Berrettini emerged victorious with a 6-3, 7-6(4) win.
Next, Flavio Cobolli, who served as Italy’s number one for the week, convincingly defeated Filip Misolic 6-1, 6-3, completing the team’s success.
Berrettini had won all six of his Davis Cup matches for Italy in 2024, aiding in their title defence. Captain Filippo Volandri showed confidence in Berrettini’s abilities on Wednesday.
In the first set, Berrettini comfortably secured it with an ace. However, a lighting fault in the arena caused a delay in the second set. Once play resumed, Rodionov initially gained momentum and broke Berrettini’s serve for the first time.
Rodionov, ranked 177th, served for the second set at 5-3, but a series of errors allowed Berrettini to break back. Facing a 0-40 deficit in the next game, Berrettini managed to serve his way out of trouble and level the score.
A double-fault by Rodionov gave Berrettini an advantage in the tiebreak. Berrettini then brought up a match point with a reflex volley and secured the win with a powerful serve.
While the first match was competitive, the second was straightforward, with Cobolli needing just over an hour to secure Italy’s spot in the semi-finals on Friday.
Belgium, aiming to win the competition for the first time, advanced to the semi-finals with a 2-0 victory over France on Tuesday.
The Final Eight continues on Thursday with Spain facing the Czech Republic, and Argentina competing against Germany.
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