Matteo Berrettini and Flavio Cobolli powered defending Davis Cup champions Italy into the semi-finals on Wednesday in Bologna.
Former Wimbledon finalist Berrettini got things off to the perfect start with a 6-3, 7-6(4) win over Jurij Rodionov and Cobolli followed suit with a 6-1, 6-3 dismissal of Filip Misolic.
Italy, without its top two players Jannik Sinner and Lorenzo Musetti, aims to become the first nation to complete a Davis Cup three-peat in the modern history of the event.
Having won all six of his Davis Cup matches for Italy in 2024 as they defended their title, captain Filippo Volandri trusted Berrettini to lead the team despite being the third-ranked Italian in this year’s squad.
Good choice.
The nations had not met in Davis Cup for 35 years, and Berrettini quickly skipped the introductions and settled into confident tennis, leading Italy to its 11th consecutive Davis Cup victory.
The 56th-ranked Berrettini saved four of five break points and won all but 15 points on serve against Rodionov. He fired seven aces to win his 20th match of 2025.
Not even a temporary lighting problem that delayed play early in the second set could slow down Berrettini.
22nd-ranked Cobolli made it look relatively easy against the talented Misolic (world no. 79) to secure victory for the Italians. He converted four of five break points and saved all five break points he faced on serve.
No team has ever completed a successful Davis Cup treble since the challenge round was canceled after the 1971 event.
Italy will face Belgium in the semi-finals on Friday at 1600 local time.
Spain – Czech Republic and Argentina – Germany will take place on Thursday in Bologna, where the winners will meet in the second semi-final, which will be played on Saturday.
