We will be left with the scream with the torn shirt, something halfway between the Incredible Hulk and King Kong and the semi-final fan with the Tricolor tied on his head under his chin like Aunt Tina, the cover smile of Matteo Berrettini, we will be left with the adrenaline. And the certainty that we had all made the predictions wrong. Jannik Sinner had some sense when he said that Italian tennis could have won the Davis Cup without him.
He was right and we were wrong when we asked him to think again and make himself available for the last point in case the circumstance of dispute arose.
If he had listened to us, he would have taken away our Hulk shirt, the scream, but above all he would have taken them away from Flavio Cobolli that not only did he deserve them more than us, but that he would have lost the experience gained with those six hours of battle on the pitch, in tight games, in comebacks, under pressure. Something that can only be experienced on the pitch, with the din of the public and the expectations of oneself and others, unrepeatable in training for the situation, and which will come in handy shortly: haymaking for his future as a professional. Or he would have taken away the opportunity from Matteo Berrettini, the pioneer of this great season, penalized by many injuries to lead his teammates to success in the Davis Cup, at a time when he certainly needed the confidence to still be able to express himself at a high level.
The absence of the catalyst of all the attention not only removed the others from the shadow, but also gave them the emotion of the challenge, the taste of conquest, the proof of not depending on Linus’ blanket. Because it is true that for the roll of honor there will always be three Davis Cups for Italy, but they will always refer to those who earned them from the field. And the party afterwards has a different flavor and a different satisfaction for those who have had the chance to try their hand at it. Could they have lost her? Yes, but the point of sport, the beauty of it, is not knowing beforehand how it will end, it is sitting there suffering on the edge of a tie break decided 17-16. And what you win without combining your contribution certainly doesn’t have the same taste as an individual.
The entire history of sport teaches this: Franco Baresi has in his palmares a World Cup won from the stands, without even a single minute on the bench (Spain 1982) and one lost on penalties in the 120th minute after the match of his life in the national team (USA 1994). He will never lose his regret for that missed penalty, but he will go down in the history of the Italian national football team not for that World Cup won at the age of 22 without appearing in the official photo before leaving, but for those miraculous 120 minutes played before, on his return from a broken meniscus following an ongoing operation during the World Cup. The most courageous captain thing the sporting gods could come up with. Would you have preferred to win it? For sure, but not without playing.
Tennis is, and remains, with the exception of Davis, a professional and individual sport, and planning is a fundamental part of the job: it can make the difference between a successful season and a failed one, and even between a successful career and one left halfway through, in the end when the match will really be taken into account with the story that Sinner already has underway.
Being able to count on a large squad and manage it well, as Filippo Volandri evidently knows how to do, it says not only about the health of Italian tennis, but it means giving everyone the best opportunities according to everyone’s needs each season. It means doing our best to get the most, allowing everyone to express themselves to their full potential. The accounts at the end of the 2025 season are there to prove it.
