Italy secured their third consecutive Davis Cup title on Sunday, triumphing over Spain 2-0 before an elated crowd in Bologna, achieving this feat despite the absence of their star player Jannik Sinner.
Flavio Cobolli ignited loud celebrations by rallying from a set down to defeat Jaume Munar 1-6, 7-6 (7/5), 7-5, ensuring Italy retained their title. Earlier, Matteo Berrettini had eased to a 6-3, 6-4 victory over Pablo Carreno Busta, putting Filippo Volandri’s team in a winning position without needing the doubles match.
THREE IN A ROW 🇮🇹🇮🇹🇮🇹
The performance of a lifetime from Flavio Cobolli to clinch it on home soil for the Italians 🏆#DavisCup pic.twitter.com/KD5y185vaB
— Davis Cup (@DavisCup) November 23, 2025
Spirit Of World Cup
“This was my dream, we’re a really united team, and we tried to recreate the spirit of the Italy team that won the (football) World Cup in 2006,” said Cobolli.
“I’m really proud of everyone and our brilliant fans are also part of this team. I’ve been repeating for three days but it’s the best day of my life.”
Simone Bolelli and Andrea Vavassori were not required in doubles as the hosts clinched the Davis Cup without losing a single match, a remarkable achievement considering they competed without their top-ranked players, Sinner and Lorenzo Musetti. Both players, who are in the top 10 of the men’s world rankings, were notable absentees in the title defence on home soil.
“It doesn’t matter who goes out there for us, we have a deep squad and we have a lot of great lads who play great tennis,” said Berrettini.
Spain was also missing their top player, world number one Carlos Alcaraz, who was sidelined due to a hamstring injury sustained during his ATP Finals match against Sinner a week prior. Their quest for a seventh Davis Cup fell short despite returning to the final for the first time since 2019.
Not Easy
“It was a very, very, very close tie,” said Spain captain David Ferrer. “We were really close.”
“Italy in important moments, they play really good,” he added. “It’s not easy for us to play in Italy against Italy.”
Before Sunday’s matches, the head of the International Tennis Federation emphasised that top players were not avoiding the competition.
“There’s this false feeling out there that top players don’t represent their nation. That’s not true,” David Haggerty told reporters ahead of the final.
“Some of those top players that played in the qualifier round or the second qualifier round didn’t make it to the finals. And so we had many top players that have played.”
Notable players like American Taylor Fritz, Australian Alex de Minaur, Dane Holger Rune, and Norwegian Casper Ruud — all in the top 20 of the men’s rankings — participated in the early rounds but did not advance to the finals with their respective nations.
(With inputs from Agencies)
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