Together, Sinner And Berrettini Lifted Italy To Another Davis Cup Title

Davis Cup Finals, Italy, Sinner, Berrettini, Malaga
Team Italy (photo: Matt McNulty/Getty Images for ITF)

MALAGA/WASHINGTON, November 25, 2024 (by Michael Dickens)

Italy won its second consecutive Davis Cup championship – and third in its history – with its 2-0 shutout of the Netherlands in Sunday’s Final in Malaga, Spain.

What began with Matteo Berrettini‘s emphatic 6-4, 6-2 victory over Botic van de Zandschulp in the opening singles match was made whole by World No. 1 Jannik Sinner, who garnered his 14th straight win with a 7-6 (2), 6-2 triumph against Tallon Griekspoor, which extended his consecutive sets won streak to 26. Griekspoor fell to 0-6 against Skinner.

It was the culmination of a phenomenal season for the 23-year-old Sinner, who finished 2024 with a 73-6 win-loss record and won eight ATP Tour titles. He captured his first two major crowns at the Australian Open and US Open, and won the ATP Finals trophy, too. His calm and consistency, not to mention his power and passion for the game, were unmatched.

While the Netherlands competed in its first Davis Cup final in 104 years of chasing after the most prestigious team prize in tennis, it was the fifth time for Italy in 93 seasons of Davis Cup play dating back to 1922.

Sunday’s success brought the Italians their third title to go with last year’s coupled with the first one that they won in 1976. In 275 ties played, Italy has achieved a 183-92 win-loss record. Combined with the success of Italy winning the Billie Jean King Cup four days earlier, it’s been a very good year for Italian pro tennis. Italy has emerged as a tennis super power, unstoppable in team competitions.

The 35th-ranked Berrettini, a Rome native who was bypassed in favor of No. 17 Lorenzo Musetti in Italy’s 2-1 quarterfinal win over Argentina Thursday, ultimately played a key role in the team’s success the rest of the week. First, he and Sinner were given the nod by team captain Filippo Volandri over Italy’s more experienced doubles pair, Simone Bolelli and Andrea Vavassori, and seized the opportunity by pulling out the tie with Argentina.

Then, Berrettini was inserted at No. 2 singles in place of Musetti, who lost his No. 2 singles match against No. 30 Francisco Cerundolo of Argentina, and won both of his matches against No. 77 Thanasi Kokkinakis of Australia in Saturday’s semifinal round and against the 80th-ranked van de Zandschulp in the final. He’s won eight straight Davis Cup singles matches since his debut at the the 2019 Finals.

As for Sinner,  the Italian No. 1 simply was money in the bank for Italy. The South Tyrolean captured all three of his singles matches – against No. 27 Sebastian Baez of Argentina, No. 9 Alex de Minaur of Australia and No. 40 Griekspoor, all in straight sets.

Thanks to the success of Berrettini and Sinner in singles, Italy did not have to play doubles in either its 2-0 semifinal victory over Australia on Saturday or in its 2-0 title win over the Netherlands on Sunday.

“It has been an amazing year. I’m very proud of the whole team,” said Sinner, during an on-court interview before Italy lifted the Davis Cup trophy. “There is a lot of work behind it and we are very happy to hold this trophy again. It was a very difficult day today, because everything can happen.

“We are very happy to be back here holding this trophy. It’s a very important competition for Italy. It’s a different kind of pressure, different weight of having Italy on your shoulders. I think we all handled it really, really well.

“If it were not important, I would not be here. For me, it means so much.”

Sinner added: “Last year, Matteo was not here as a player, but he supported us, which gave us a lot of strength. This year, sharing this moment, especially with this group – Lorenzo, Andrea, Simone and Matteo – means so much to me. I’m very happy and glad to be a part of it.”

After Berrettini’s opening win over van de Zandschulp, he spoke candidly about appreciating the moment of being able to represent his country and to win for Italy.

“Obviously, if you win, it’s better,” he said. “Being able to be healthy, to be here and enjoying the atmosphere is the most important thing for me. I missed that [last year] these moments. That’s why I’m really happy.”

Then, after Sinner clinched the Davis Cup title, Berrettini added to his earlier thoughts and spoke of the importance of playing together as a team.

“Obviously, last year I was here to support the team, and this year I brought some points to the cause,” he said. “But it doesn’t matter who is playing, we always put our heart on the court. Everybody is giving their best, that is the secret to our team.

“Also, the guys who are back home – Flavio Cobolli, Matteo Arnaldi – they won some matches in the previous stage that were really important. It’s a really big team and I’m very happy with the trophy.”

Here’s what others had to say:

• Doubles specialist Simone Bolelli: “What can I say? It’s a unique feeling, a great emotion. I’m really lucky to be part of this team, honestly. I’m really happy for Matteo. Last year, he was without us and this year, he won the trophy on the court.”

• Lorenzo Musetti: “I particularly am proud of the team. … The team is a really big squad with a lot of confidence. I’m in particular really proud of the team. As Matteo said, there are other guys who were part of the team. I’m super proud to be part of this team. To win the Davis Cup two times in a row is a great achievement.”

• Team captain Filippo Volandri: “It’s amazing because last year we won for the first time after 47 years. What I said at the beginning of this journey to the players is: ‘We want to make history, and history is if you can do it twice.’ I was thinking in the next few years, but it happened right away and I’m so proud of this team.”

By the numbers

By winning their second straight Davis Cup crown, Italy became the first country to defend their title since Czechia in 2013 and just the sixth overall. They are just the fifth nation to win both the Davis Cup and the Billie Jean King Cup in the same year.

“Quotable …”

“I once again realized how much I care about Davis Cup. And living those moments I took all this energy, and I was, like ‘Okay, next year, you’re going to be here, you going to be fighting for Italy.’ I used that as an engine for the training sessions and everything that happened afterwards.”

– Matteo Berrettini of Italy, during Italy’s post-tie Davis Cup news conference, on missing last year’s Davis Cup final due to injury and his desire to be part of this year’s Davis Cup champion.

 

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