Soni leads Italy previous Netherlands for second consecutive Davis Cup title

MALAGA, Spain – Italy has gone nearly a quarter-century with out profitable the Davis Cup. Then got here Jannik Sinner, and now the nation is celebrating its second title in a row.

The No. 1-ranked Sinner gained the group’s annual event and capped his profitable season by beating Tallon Griekspoor 7-6 (2), 6-2 on Sunday in a 2-0 win over the Netherlands within the Davis Cup last.

“Coming again because the defending champs and profitable once more — it is among the best emotions I feel for all of us,” Sinner stated. “We’re very comfortable to elevate this trophy and, in fact, to enter the preseason with quite a lot of confidence.”

Matteo Berrettini put Italy forward with a 6-4, 6-2 victory over Botic van de Zandschulp – the final man to beat Rafael Nadal – within the opening singles match on the laborious court docket at Palacio de Deportes Jose Maria Martin Carpena within the south. Spain.

The Italians, backed by a throng of singing followers enjoying drums and armed with megaphones within the crowd of 9,200, turned the primary group to win the Davis Cup twice in a row for the reason that Czech Republic in 2012 and 2013.

Italy ladies gained the Billie Jean King Cup by defeating Slovakia on Wednesday.

“They make us much more proud,” stated Davis Cup captain Filippo Volandri.

After Sinner accomplished his victory, Berrettini and his teammates rushed onto the court docket to begin the ceremony, clasping arms and bouncing in unison. Volandri grabbed Sinner and pulled him off the bottom.

It was clear who was the important thing to this success. Sinner went 4-0 in Malaga, together with two wins with Berrettini towards Argentina within the quarterfinals.

Berrettini performed an necessary position, too, after changing Lorenzo Musetti within the singles. Berrettini was final at Wimbledon in 2021 however since then has gone via a sequence of accidents and diseases which have diminished his enjoying time. He talked in regards to the psychological issues he confronted.

“I did not miss a win or a loss,” stated Berrettini. “I miss these occasions.”

He wanted time to search out his footing towards the Eightieth-ranked van de Zandschulp. However Berrettini took over by holding the ultimate three video games of the opening set, whereas Sinner left his entrance row seat behind the Italian bench to move to the locker room and put together to seal the deal.

He hit 15 aces towards Fortieth-ranked Griekspoor and prolonged his unbeaten streak in tour-level competitors to 14 matches and 26 units, together with a title on the ATP Finals final week.

The rise of sin is among the greatest tales of the yr in tennis. He went 73-6 with eight singles titles in 2024, along with his first two Grand Slam titles on the Australian Open and the US Open. The latter got here shortly after he was cleared of wrongdoing in a doping case linked to 2 assessments for steroids in March; An attraction by the World Anti-Doping Company relating to that call continues to be pending.

The Netherlands reached the Davis Cup last for the primary time.

“We imagine,” stated Dutch captain Paul Haarhuis in regards to the Italians, “we will beat them.”

Till final yr, Italy’s final Davis Cup medal was in 1976. So Volandri stated he instructed his gamers to consider their purpose: “We need to make historical past.”

Griekspoor, who misplaced 0-6 to Sinner, held their very own till the tip of the primary sport, which was preceded by chants of “Italia! Italy! “… and “Let’s go, Tallon! Let’s go!” Sinner was robust, prepared for the second, and constructed an enormous lead earlier than ending it with an ace.

From 2-all within the second set, Sinner wouldn’t drop one other sport. Quickly, he joined Berrettini, Volandri, Musetti and the remainder of the group in elevating the silver {hardware} that turned theirs.