Sinner and Cobolli, the 1976 Davis Cup hero speaks: "Djokovic is at his last chance, he'll be hungry for victory. Flavio will be among the best in a year."
Milan, July 11, 2025 – There's more to Sinner than just him: another young man "in the top division of tennis." Flavio Cobolli, "the big surprise of this Wimbledon," according to Paolo Bertolucci , TV commentator and Davis Cup hero.
After a bad day, Jannik met up with Dimitrov. Flavio held his own against Djokovic. What did you like most about this guy?
"He's a player who's made huge strides in the last year. Starting out as a classic clay-court player, he's managed to dispel any remaining doubts about other surfaces with his results, just like he did here at Wimbledon."
But what was missing with Djokovic?
"Maybe a bit of experience. He kept up with him for a long time, but he paid for some lapses during the match, some minor blackouts. But there's time for him, he's cracked the top twenty: in a year these lapses will be gone and the top ten will be even closer."
Nole faces Sinner in a Grand Slam final a month after the Roland Garros final. Jannik will have the task of avenging Flavio. Given the Italian's four previous matches, do you think it will be easy for the talented South Tyrolean?
"Wimbledon is the toughest match. Nole is probably playing his last chance here, he'll be hungry. Winning would still be a sensational feat, because he'd have to beat Jannik first and then Alcaraz."
Compare matches. The near-disaster against the unfortunate Dimitrov (who left the match injured) and then the near-domination against Shelton. Do you see our Italian player recovering?
"It was a very unusual match against the Bulgarian, as Grigor was playing a practically perfect match. Sinner seemed to me to be severely limited by the elbow pain, from which he seems to have fully recovered."
Do we have the 'old Sinner' again?
"Only he knows that. He says he feels good. He won three sets to love against Shelton and says he's back in good shape despite the visible bandages. We have to trust what he tells us."
There's a title drought that needs to be broken. Do you think he's still carrying around some of the burden of his suspension? Or are we asking too much of him?
"Let's start from the assumption that no one is unbeatable, not even the Big Four have ever been. Statistics tell us that top players lose an average of eight matches per season. At the moment, Sinner is on five, we have to accept that he can't always win."
Also because the results are there in the end...
“Upon returning after months of suspension, he practically always reached the finals and semi-finals. This is something the fans need to get into their heads.”
Will he completely free himself from the Alcaraz obstacle?
“One thing at a time, first there's a big game to play.”
Zverev's crisis and questions about Berrettini's future. Wimbledon has become a bit of an emotional Slam. Why?
"Because there are two players (Sinner and Alcaraz, ed.) who completely dominate the scene. The only one who can keep up with them, with thrilling performances, is Nole. Everyone else is too far behind."
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