Sinner, a key member of the Italian team which triumphed at the past two editions of the Davis Cup, elected to maximise his recovery at the beginning of the sport’s brief six-week off-season after triumphing at last week’s ATP Finals.

The presence of just one of the top 10 men’s players at this year’s event has prompted discussion over the tournament’s future format.

But, after Berrettini and Cobolli delivered for Italy in their quarter-final against Austria, both players spoke about the privilege they felt in competing for the host nation at the Finals.

That passion was again evidence as both players once again fed off the energy provided by their home crowd to secure back-to-back 2-0 victories this week.

Already a cauldron of noise following Berrettini’s win, Bologna’s SuperTennis Arena reached fever pitch as Cobolli reached his match points on Bergs’ serve – but the Belgian twice hung on with clutch serving to level at five games apiece.

The increasingly animated Cobolli had already displayed nerves of steel in shutting down four break points in the deciding set to reach that moment, and the stage was set for a grand finale – although few could have foreseen the drama to come.

It was next Cobolli’s turn to withstand a series of match points in an enthralling conclusion – escaping four of them in the space of just six points.

From there, the players continued to exchange opportunities and maintained their high quality – despite the stakes and excitable crowd – as the score continued to rise.

But Bergs was first to blink, hitting wide to present Cobolli with his seventh match point, which he seized by hammering over a first serve to ignite the celebrations.