Italy Clinches Record Third Consecutive Davis Cup Championship
Flavio Cobolli secured one of the longest deciding set in team tennis history to overcome Belgium's Zizou Bergs on Friday
The young Italian star and his compatriot propelled the Italian squad to Davis Cup victory as the home team defeated Spain to claim a historic third successive championship in front of an ecstatic local supporters
48 hours after he edged an epic 32-point tie-break, the Italian talent returned to shone as he battled back from a set and a break down to defeat Jaume Munar in a grueling match
The 23-year-old's determined 1-6 7-6 (7-5) 7-5 win secured a 2-0 victory for his country in Bologna after Berrettini had won in straight sets against Pablo Carreno Busta
It is a fourth team championship title overall for Italy, who are the first nation to achieve three consecutive championships since title holders no longer received direct entry to the final over five decades back
Home Crowd Fuels Team Italy Victory
Supported passionately by the vast majority of a packed 10,000-strong audience, Cobolli conquered a poor beginning to trigger scenes of jubilation among the Italian players, staff and supporters
The champion was mobbed by his teammates on court but paused for a moment to praise his opponent on his performance before rejoining the festivities
Star Performers Step Up in Missing Stars
Each the Italian squad and the Spanish team made the final even with missing star athletes, with the non-participation of Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner preventing spectators a seventh matchup of the season between the top-ranked tennis stars
But, with national number two Lorenzo Musetti too missing, Cobolli and Berrettini owned their opportunities in the limelight with three wins from all their matches each during the tournament
Thrilling Recovery Seals Win
The crowd chanted the player's moniker as he kept his calm to close out his recovery triumph to love, having achieved the breakthrough in the 11th game of a tense deciding set
That was quite an accomplishment, given he had stated he had realized a "dream" in guiding Italy to Sunday's showpiece on domestic ground
In contrast to the scenes of the previous match, when the athlete removed his shirt in celebration on "among the greatest" moments of his career, the ranked player paid the price for a slow start as he lost a one-sided first set
But the determined player initiated a essential, swift response after going a break down at the beginning of the following set
The Italian's luck appeared to shift after a brief stop in play when a spectator of the crowd became unwell
When the match resumed, and with Munar down a critical moment, the player lobbed over a volley that caught a fortunate net cord and brought the set to deuce
Although frustratingly denied four set points on his rival's serve, Cobolli seized command of a must-win tie-break to force the final set - where he yet again delivered
The Veteran Extends Impressive Winning Streak
The Italian star had earlier extended his team competition singles victory run to eleven consecutive wins with an excellent display against the Spanish opponent
The former Wimbledon runner-up converted his decisive opportunity for a 5-3 lead before confidently serving out the opener to love
Having taken 11 of the last 13 points to secure the first set, Berrettini looked set to tighten his hold on the contest upon forcing opportunities in the initial game of the following set
His opponent managed to survive both before putting together a series of strong serving performances - but the Italian seized his following chance and closed to love to finish his triumph