Malaga (Spain): Inspired Italian Jannik Sinner had a perfect week as he sealed his country’s first Davis Cup title in almost 50 years on Sunday, beating Australian Alex De Minaur to complete a 2-0 victory for the Azzurri.
Italian No.1 Sinner produced a devastating performance to outclass a helpless De Minaur 6-3, 6-0 after Matteo Arnaldi outlasted Alexei Popyrin in the opening singles clash.
Sinner, world number 4, finished the week with five wins from five, including a heroic performance in Saturday’s semi-final when he beat Novak Djokovic to keep his country alive against Serbia after saving three consecutive match points .
He then beat Djokovic and the Serbian’s partner Miomir Kecmanovic in doubles with teammate Lorenzo Sonego to send Italy into the final against 28-time winners Australia, and 24 hours later Sinner won the title in style.
Hitting the ball with relentless power from the baseline, the Italian dominated from the moment he broke serve at the start of the first set and De Minaur could do nothing.
Sinner’s purple stain lasted until he scored the winning point on his third match point, sparking celebrations among teammates, officials and a boisterous Italian contingent inside the Malaga arena who hosted this week’s exciting Final Eight.
“It helps a lot to play for the whole team and it was an incredible feeling for all of us,” said Sinner as Italy rejoiced in a first Davis Cup title since 1976 and only the second in its history .
“Thank you to the Australian team for coming out here.”
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni celebrated on social media platform X.
“A historic result… congratulations to our players for the talent and commitment they have shown, as well as to all the staff,” she posted.
Arnaldi was recalled to the Italian singles lineup after missing the semi-final against Serbia and rewarded the faith of captain Filippo Volandri by beating Popyrin 7-5, 2-6, 6-4 in the first singles.
With Sinner in the form of his life, having reached the title match of last week’s ATP Finals which he lost to Djokovic, it was always going to be a tall order for Australia, especially as De Minaur had lost to Sinner in his previous five matches.
It was close at first as De Minaur dug in, but Sinner’s superior firepower quickly earned him a break on serve and from then on the result seemed inevitable.
“Jannik is riding this incredible wave of confidence,” De Minaur said. “He plays in indoor conditions with heavy balls where he can hit hard.
“Today I just didn’t have enough.”
Lleyton Hewitt’s Australia have now been beaten in the final in successive years after losing to Canada in 2022.
Italy and Australia automatically qualify for next year’s 16-nation final in four cities, with the ITF announcing on Sunday that the eight-nation final would again be held in Malaga.
