Italy Clinches Record Three-Peat Tennis Trophy Title
The Italian player won the sixth-longest tie-break in Davis Cup records to defeat his Belgian opponent on Friday
Flavio Cobolli alongside Matteo Berrettini led Italy to team tennis victory as the hosts defeated Spain to secure a historic third successive title in front of an overjoyed local supporters
48 hours following he edged a marathon lengthy tie-break, the Italian talent once again starred as he recovered from a set and a break down to overcome his Spanish opponent in a grueling match
The 23-year-old's gritty comeback victory triumph sealed a straight sets victory for his nation in Bologna after Berrettini had triumphed in straight sets against Pablo Carreno Busta
It is a fourth overall team championship victory in total for the Italian team, who are the first nation to achieve three consecutive championships since defending champions stopped receiving direct entry to the championship match 53 years ago
Local Supporters Fuels Italian Triumph
Supported passionately by the overwhelming number of a packed 10,000-strong audience, the Italian star overcame a slow start to trigger scenes of celebration among the team athletes, staff and fans
The champion was mobbed by his teammates on the playing surface but paused for a brief time to commend his opponent on his efforts before rejoining the festivities
Key Players Deliver in Absence
Each the Italian squad and Spain reached the championship match despite missing key players, with the absence of top-ranked players preventing fans a seventh meeting of the season between the top-ranked men's players
But, with national number two another key player too absent, the Italian duo seized their moments in the limelight with perfect records from all their matches apiece during the tournament
Thrilling Comeback Seals Victory
The audience chanted Cobolli's moniker as he kept his composure to serve out his recovery triumph to zero, having forced the decisive break in the 11th game of a nail-biting final set
That was no mean feat, given he had stated he had realized a "goal" in guiding Italy to Sunday's final on home soil
In opposition to the scenes of Friday night, when the athlete removed his jersey in jubilation on "among the greatest" moments of his career, the world number 22 paid the price for a poor beginning as he conceded a dominant opening set
But Cobolli initiated a necessary, immediate comeback after falling a behind at the beginning of the second
Cobolli's luck appeared to change after a nine-minute pause in the match when a member of the crowd became ill
When the match resumed, and with his opponent down a critical moment, the Italian floated over a volley that caught a lucky net tape and brought the game back on level terms
Even though frustratingly denied multiple opportunities on his rival's serve, Cobolli seized control of a decisive tie-break to push the final set - where he yet again delivered
The Veteran Continues Remarkable Run
Berrettini had previously taken his team competition individual winning streak to eleven consecutive wins with an excellent performance against Carreno Busta
The Grand Slam finalist converted his third break point for a 5-3 lead before confidently closing the opener to love
Having won 11 of the last 13 points to secure the first set, the player looked set to strengthen his hold on the match upon forcing two break points in the opening game of the second
His opponent managed to save each before putting together a series of strong serving performances - but Berrettini took his next opportunity and closed to love to finish his triumph