Italy and the Netherlands prematurely reached the finals of the Davis Cup.
Led by US Open finalist Jannik Sinner, the Italian team beat Argentina 2-1 on matchday 2 of the intermediate round in Bologna. The Netherlands also won their duel with Great Britain 2-1, the decision there only came in the final doubles.
Sinner won against Francisco Cherundolo 7: 5, 1: 6, 6: 3, before Matteo Berrettini had defeated his Argentinian opponent Sebastian Baez in two sets 6: 2, 6: 3. Simone Bolelli and Fabio Fognini then lost their doubles 5:7, 6:2, 3:6 against Maximo Gonzales and Horacio Zeballos, but with two wins before the last matchday on Sunday against Sweden, Italy is sure of the final tournament at the end of November qualified in Malaga.
The Netherlands will also be among the top eight teams. After the two singles it was 1-1 against the British in Glasgow in the evening, Wesley Koolhof and Matwe Middelkoop then defeated Andy Murray and Joe Salisbury in doubles 7-6 (7-0), 6-7 (6-8), 6:3 and secured their team the decisive second victory. In addition to the Netherlands, the USA qualified early for the final round in Group D on Thursday.
Meanwhile, the newly crowned US Open champion Carlos Alcaraz suffered a defeat. The Spaniard, who became the youngest world number one in history with his title in New York last weekend, lost in Valencia against the strong Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime 7: 6 (7: 3), 4: 6, 2: 6 and sent his team into the decisive doubles.
