Wimbledon, Italian records: Sinner, Cobolli and Sonego in the eighth finals
LONDON. There is a blue wave that sweeps the green of Wimbledon and overturns old habits: Sinner, Cobolli, Sonego are in the eighth finals of the Championships, three so far ahead we have never had. «A three-pronged attack», jokes the former baby granata Sonny, after the 5 sets (6-7 7-6 7-6 3-6 7-6) and the 5 thriller hours spent battling “Sonego-style” against Nakashima. «We have plenty of good feet: me and Cobolli on the wings, Jannik as center forward: he always puts it in». True team spirit: «As long as I could I watched Flavio's match, then on the court I saw that he and Jannik were watching mine from the terrace, and I got pumped up. We are all friends, we are enjoying this magical atmosphere». Azzurri of football, please take notes.
Three victories, three styles, only a shame for Eli Cocciaretto, who wasted his chances against Bencic (6-4 3-6 7-6). The former clay court player Cobolli now has the pace of a gardener, Lorenzo excels in the body to body, Jannik bends Pedro Martinez with surgical coolness, giving up a paltry 5 games (6-1 6-3 6-1). In three rounds he has left 17 on the road, without ever losing his serve, and it is a record within a record because not even the star Federer had managed to concede so few to reach the eighth finals, at most (or at least) 19 in 2004. «If I can I try to go fast, but without rushing. I don't care about numbers, everything can change quickly from one round to the next. Then it's a different type of tennis, back then there was more serve&volley. And a different type of grass». In any case, a living surface, ergo unpredictable and unruly.
"I'm here to forget Paris," Volpe had said on the eve of the match, now the memory of the defeat against Alcaraz is a nuisance that is getting smaller. "Different tournament, different surface. A Slam final can leave some marks, but a month has passed: I have other things to think about." About Griga Dimitrov, ageless playboy and seasoned fantasista ("Someone who knows how to play on these courts"), semifinalist here in 2014 and his opponent tomorrow. Or how not to miss the Silverstone qualifiers: "It always happens halfway through Wimbledon and I can't go, and that's fine because it means I'm still in. But I'll organize the training so as not to miss Q3." Coach Vagnozzi will take care of the cooking: "I'm the assistant, the menu is meat and pasta. Let's try to survive..."
THE CASE
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Cobolli, in his first eighth Slam, shows off "one of my best matches (6-2 6-4 6-2)" against Mensik. Up until three years ago I hated grass, now I like it a lot, but I don't know why." Maybe it's his time in the Roma youth team (tomorrow his friend Bove could arrive), maybe it's "that God didn't give me the serve but the legs did, and I can move well." For him there's the reborn Cilic, 36 years old and 100 victories at Wimbledon just like Djokovic. The last time he reached the eighth he went straight to the final, surrendering only to Federer. Sonny has another bomber, Ben Shelton: "It's the third Slam in a row that I've met him, and I haven't managed to beat him yet." But this Wimbledon, the only Slam in which we've never won in singles, seems like the tournament of firsts.
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