Jannik Sinner was the hero as Italy defeated Australia to secure their first Davis Cup title in 47 years
Matteo Arnaldi beat Alexei Popyrin 7-5 2-6 6-4 in a nervy opening singles match to put Italy 1-0 up in Malaga, Spain. Sinner then backed up his sterling week with a 6-3 6-0 win over De Minaur to help consolidate
It is the second time Italy have lifted the Davis Cup, having previously won the title in 1976.
Australia were bidding for a 29th Davis Cup title but have now lost back-to-back finals, having been beaten by Canada last year.
Italy arrived for the final eight with some expectation around them, largely thanks to Sinner’s stellar form.
The 22-year-old has lost just three of his past 23 matches, winning titles in Montpellier, Toronto, Beijing and Vienna, and beat world number one Novak Djokovic in the ATP Finals round-robin stages.
World number four Sinner had already starred for Italy on Saturday, saving three match points against Djokovic to level the tie against Serbia before partnering Lorenzo Sonego to victory in the doubles to book Italy’s final spot.
Enjoying the form of his life, Sinner helped Italy race past Australia for their second Davis Cup title and deny Australia their 30th title
