Italian tennis triumphs, in the name of Jannik Sinner. Forty-seven years later, he is the one who leads the Azzurri to the dance with the salad bowl, as the most coveted cup, the Davis, is called. He did it by beating Australia, a real blue taboo, in the final in Malaga, thanks to the successes of Matteo Arnaldi and above all of Jannik Sinner, the blue diamond, the true protagonist of the Andalusian final 8, capable of leading Italtennis to the finish line by the hand which had been missing since 1976 when Panatta-Barazzuti-Barazzutti-Zugarelli made Italy dream, with Pietrangeli as captain. In the eighth Davis Cup final (the fourth against the bête noire Australia, winners in 1960, 1961 and 1977), captain Filippo Volandri’s boys achieved the feat.
Sinner gives Davis to Italy
The last attempt was in 1998 and Italy was defeated in the match against Sweden. In Malaga the blue dominates, and the second triumph in history comes with two victories in the singles. Also starring was Matteo Arnaldi who lost on his debut and instead overturned Popyrin in three sets after going into crisis in the second. Then, the smash ball to Sinner, who just yesterday was able to beat the No. 1 in the world, Djokovic, for the second time, and today was precise in shaking off De Minaur’s aggressiveness at the net, which put him in difficulty only in the first games. It ends in two sets, 6-3, 6-0: on the third match point canceled by his Australian rival-friend, Sinner explodes the celebrations of the Italian bench, where next to captain Volandri and all the players also sat the great absentee, Matteo Berrettini. The score of the second set says that when Sinner kicked into gear, there was none for anyone.
Arnaldi wins the first crucial match
On the evening in Malaga, Matteo Arnaldi was also the protagonist, who did not disappoint and won the first, crucial, singles, beating Popyrin 7-5 2-6 6-4 after missing three set points before closing the first set and saving eight break points in the third. After the three unexploited match points in the quarter-final against the Dutch Botic Van de Zandschulp in the match that opened the Italian campaign in Malaga, Arnaldi returns to the court with the thoughtful lightness that allowed him to gain 90 positions in the rankings from early 2023. Together with the speed with which he manages to absorb mistakes without being influenced by them, and a strong personality that needs to be channeled to enhance their effects, his greater, more evident quality is the key skill that made the game go round. Then, of course, there’s tennis. There are shots to be roughed up, to be refined, but a high-level reading of situations and a speed in processing information equal to that of legs and feet that fly on the pitch.
The blue starts well, takes a break lead but doesn’t defend it. The match swings like a pendulum between fighting spirit and tension. Both try to counterattack, to play deep with few variations, more in the center to move the opponent and then enter and target the side lines. The Sanremo player comes close to closing the score. In fact, he earned three set points in response but was hit with a forehand three times. Three errors of fear and frustration that seem to leave consequences in the next game too. Twice, in fact, the blue finds himself facing break points, but he saves himself. Indeed, when the going gets tough, in the end he plays better.
However, the Australian begins the second set with a break advantage. The blue is hasty in key choices, and a double fault does the rest. The weight of the match and the responsibility fall on Arnaldi who plays harder to catch up. But, as so often happens, it only ends up making things worse. The third set always moves on the edge. The fans, mostly Italian, heat up the atmosphere. Popyrin misses five chances to go one break ahead in the first two return rounds. Arnaldi lets the wave pass, but he stays ahead. The Sanremo player closes the fifth game with what we can consider the first real “Arnaldi style” point of the match: great defense from the back, and then an explosive right from the left along the line. The whole Italian team, including the exceptional fan Matteo Berrettini, jumps to their feet. The ball passes to Sinner, who closes the score in one hour and 21 minutes. Then all the Azzurri embraced on the pitch, including Volandri, told the public their emotion. The Davis party begins, and it’s blue
2023-11-26 19:27:35
#Sinner #Italy #Davis #Cup #years
