14 match points came and went in a wild final set of Flavio Cobolli’s 6-3, 6-7 (5), 7-6 (15) win over Zizou Bergs on Friday in Bologna as the Italian team answered the bell in the most dramatic fashion to reach the Davis Cup finals for the third consecutive year.
Two-time defending champions Italy beat Belgium 2-0 to reach the final, but the result of Friday’s tie hardly describes the high drama that unfolded in Friday’s second match at the SuperTennis Arena in Bologna.
Cobolli and Bergs battled through a 94-minute final set to keep Italy’s three-peat hopes alive, the team showing its depth without the services of Jannik Sinner and Lorenzo Musetti to set up a final with the winner of Saturday’s semi-final between Spain and Germany.
“In the end, I realized my dream”, said Cobolli. “Now we’re in the final. It’s one of the best days of my life.”
Earlier on Friday it was Matteo Berrettini who defeated Raphael Collignon in the first leg of Friday’s semi-final.
“It’s all about fighting for your country and for your team, and that’s what I’m doing now,” Berrettini said after his 6-3, 6-4 victory.
“Pressure is a privilege, isn’t it?” said Berrettini. “My whole family is here, which never happens, my teammates, we’re such good friends, it’s such a special moment for me. Just enjoy the moment, that’s the secret.”
Classic by Bergs and Cobolli
No one had any idea what was in store for them when the tiebreak began in the second set between Coboll and Bergs. Would the Italian be in the straight? He was certainly playing well enough to do so, but credit to Bergs, who showed great heart and passion in this contest to win the shot and force a third set.
The pair would soon find themselves weaving another chapter in the annals of Davis Cup history with a dramatic finish that went far beyond expectations.
Bergs saved a pair of match points as he served for 4-5 in the third game, bravely shrugging off the immense pressure to play clear and keep himself alive – it was just the beginning.
He almost broke ahead in the next game, but Cobolli answered the bell by saving a break point as Bergs went for a backhand for a line winner that missed just wide of the sideline.
Bergs had a pair of match points in the tiebreak at 6-4 but dropped the forehand – perhaps he was a little too eager to win it.
Cobolli hit a second serve and lured Bergs into a backhand error to level at 6-all.
Two match points had come and gone for both at this point, and the duel fan base in Bologna was clamoring for a third as the pair went to a second change of ends in the final set tiebreak.
Cobolli missed an outside advantage, giving Bergs his third match point on service, 7-6.
It was Coboll’s time to shine as he advanced to a long point and finally finished it off with a back-foot cross – a remarkable play given the pressure of the moment.
7-7, but a big serve gave Berg her fourth match point, which was then saved by a big Coboll serve, 8-8. Another service winner, out of bounds, gave Cobolli a third match point and elicited a collective roar of delight from the Italian fans.
Bergs would not be denied. He bowled a cross-field and got in to make a tremendous winner on the volley. A third match point saved by the Belgian, 9-9.
A forehand down the middle gave Berg his fifth match point on Coboll’s serve, which was quickly saved by the Italian with a serve plus a winner down the middle. 10-10. Cobolli had another match point, with Bergs serving for 10-11, but the Belgian was too good from the baseline. 11-11.
Coboll’s fifth match point proved to be another opportunity for Bergs to raise his level. He played a magnificent baseline and hit an inside-out winner to tie it at 12.
Wow.
Five match points had come and gone for both, the crowd now in a frenzy between points.
They got louder when Cobolli reached her sixth match point but was begged after Bergs’ first serve found the line down the T for a winner. 13-13.
Cobolli then saved the sixth match point with a huge serve, for 14 all, but then missed a long serve to give Bergs the seventh match point, on his serve.
No such luck for the Belgian, who was seen on his bench in tears after the drama unfolded. For every Davis Cup winner, there must be a heartbreaking loser.
In the end it would be Cobolli who found the dagger. He won Bergs’ last two service points, then converted his seventh service point to close out the epic battle after saving 12 match points in the tiebreak and fourteen in the final set.
