Italy had already booked their spot in the Final 8 of the Davis Cup Finals, which will be held in Malaga, Spain in November, but a familiar face came to cheer them on on Sunday as they completed a dominant week in the Group Stage in Bologna, Italy.
Jannik Sinner, fresh off capturing his first US Open title, was on hand at Italy’s tie against the Netherlands, supporting them from the sidelines as Matteo Berrettini and Flavio Cobolli battled to wins over Botic van de Zandschulp and Tallon Griekspoor, respectively.
Both singles matches went to three sets, with Berrettini coming back from a set down to defeat Botic van de Zandschulp—Carlos Alcaraz’s conqueror at the US Open—3-6, 6-4, 6-4, then Cobolli outdoing Griekspoor, 7-6 (4), 4-6, 6-3, to clinch the tie.
Italy won all three of their ties this week, with 2-1 triumphs against Brazil on Wednesday and Belgium on Friday—and Berrettini was 3-0 himself, having beaten Brazilian teenager Joao Fonseca, 6-1, 7-6 (5), and Belgian Alexander Blockx, 3-6, 6-2, 7-5, before his latest victory over Van de Zandschulp, a former Top 30 player.
Italy are the defending Davis Cup champions, having captured the title for the first time in 47 years last November.
