The Italian team Clinches Historic Three-Peat Davis Cup Title
Flavio Cobolli secured the sixth-longest deciding set in team tennis records to defeat his Belgian opponent on Friday
Flavio Cobolli alongside Matteo Berrettini propelled the Italian squad to team tennis victory as the hosts overcame the Spanish team to claim a record-breaking third consecutive title in front of an ecstatic local supporters
Two days after he edged a marathon lengthy decider, Cobolli returned to shone as he recovered from behind in sets to beat Jaume Munar in three sets
The 23-year-old's gritty 1-6 7-6 (7-5) 7-5 triumph secured a 2-0 triumph for his nation in the Italian city after his teammate had prevailed in straight sets against the Spanish player
It is a fourth overall team championship victory overall for the Italian team, who are the first nation to win three straight titles since title holders stopped receiving direct entry to the final over five decades back
Local Supporters Inspires Italian Victory
Supported passionately by the vast majority of a packed 10,000-strong audience, Cobolli overcame a poor beginning to spark scenes of jubilation among the Italian players, staff and supporters
The champion was mobbed by his team-mates on court but took a brief time to commend Munar on his performance before rejoining the festivities
Key Players Step Up in Absence
Each the Italian squad and the Spanish team made the championship match despite being without key players, with the non-participation of top-ranked players denying spectators a seventh meeting of the season between the top-ranked men's players
But, with Italian second-ranked another key player also absent, the Italian duo seized their moments in the spotlight with three wins from three singles matches apiece during the tournament
Thrilling Comeback Seals Victory
The crowd shouted the player's name as he maintained his composure to close out his recovery victory to zero, having achieved the decisive break in the penultimate game of a nail-biting deciding set
That was quite an accomplishment, given he had stated he had realized a "goal" in guiding Italy to the final on domestic ground
In opposition to the scenes of the previous match, when the athlete tore off his jersey in celebration on "one of the best" moments of his career, the ranked player faced the consequence for a slow start as he conceded a one-sided first set
But Cobolli launched a essential, immediate response after going a behind at the beginning of the second
Cobolli's luck appeared to shift after a brief stop in the match when a spectator of the crowd became unwell
When play resumed, and with his opponent facing a critical moment, the Italian lobbed over a volley that hit a fortunate net cord and put the game back on level terms
Even though annoyingly denied multiple opportunities on his opponent's service game, Cobolli wrested control of a must-win tie-break to force the final set - where he yet again delivered
The Veteran Extends Remarkable Winning Streak
The Italian star had previously taken his Davis Cup singles winning streak to 11 matches with an superb display against Carreno Busta
The Grand Slam finalist converted his decisive opportunity for a 5-3 lead before confidently serving out the first set to zero
Having won 11 of the last 13 points to take the opening set, the player looked set to strengthen his grip on the match upon creating opportunities in the opening game of the following set
His opponent managed to save both before putting together a series of strong service games - but the Italian took his following chance and served out to zero to complete his triumph