Matteo Berrettini shares his delight following Italy's win over the USA at the Davis Cup
The Davis Cup witnessed an intriguing quarterfinal at the Palacio de Deportes Jose Maria Martin Carpena Arena in Malaga on Thursday, as heavyweights USA took on Italy.
World No. 16 Matteo Berrettini was forced to withdraw from the tournament due to a foot injury, but that did not prevent the Italian from lending valuable support to his compatriots. He was spotted on the sidelines during the quarterfinals on Thursday.
Upon registering an unexpected victory against favorites USA, the Italians celebrated their qualification to the semifinals of the Davis Cup vociferously. Berrettini shared a picture of their celebration on social media later in the day.
After the victory, Italy captain Filippo Volandri expressed his delight at having such a passionate group of players.
"Even Matteo (Berrettini), who couldn’t play because of injury is here, and Jannik (Sinner) supporting from home. I am really lucky to have this team," Volandri said.
Italy to meet Canada in Davis Cup semifinals
Lorenzo Sonego began proceedings for Italy against Frances Tiafoe of the USA in the Davis Cup quarterfinals on Thursday.
Sonego looked in great touch right from the start, taking the opening set 6-3. He carried the momentum into the second, winning it in a tie-break to give his team a valuable 1-0 lead.
The second singles encounter saw Lorenzo Musetti going down in straight sets against Taylor Fritz.
With the scores level, the doubles team of Fabio Fognini and Simone Bolelli squared off against Tommy Paul and Jack Sock in the decider. The experienced Italian pair rose to the challenge, winning in straight sets to secure a 2-1 victory for the Italians.
With their emphatic win over Team USA, the Italians booked a semifinal date with Canada on Saturday.
The Canadians recorded a 2-1 victory over Germany in their quarterfinal tie. World No. 6 Felix Auger-Aliassime and the doubles pair of Vasek Pospisil and Denis Shapovalov registered wins for their team.