Jannik Sinner leads Italy past the Netherlands for its second consecutive Davis Cup title

Jannik Sinner leads Italy to back-to-back Davis Cup titles, capping off a historic season with a championship win.

Italy went nearly a quarter-century without winning the Davis Cup. Then along came Jannik Sinner, and now the country is celebrating its second consecutive title.

The No. 1-ranked Sinner clinched the championship in the annual team event and capped his breakthrough season by beating Tallon Griekspoor 7-6 (2), 6-2 on Sunday for a 2-0 win over the Netherlands in the final of the Davis Cup.

“Coming back as defending champions and winning again — it’s one of the best feelings I think for all of us,” Sinner said. “We are very happy to lift this trophy and, of course, also to go into the preseason with a bunch of confidence boosts.”

Matteo Berrettini put Italy ahead with a 6-4, 6-2 victory over Botic van de Zandschulp — the last man to beat Rafael Nadal — in the opening singles match on an indoor hard court at the Palacio de Deportes Jose Maria Martin Carpena in southern Spain.

The Italians, backed by a loud contingent of singing fans playing drums and armed with megaphones in the crowd of 9,200, became the first team to win the Davis Cup twice in a row since the Czech Republic in 2012 and 2013.

Italy’s women won the Billie Jean King Cup by defeating Slovakia on Wednesday.

“They make us even more proud,” Davis Cup captain Filippo Volandri said.