Day 13 Match of the day - part two

Flavio Cobolli is trying as hard as he can not to think about it. He has already admitted to being nervous as he has made his way through the rounds, and superstitious, too. And yet he is trying not to think about it.

“I just want to think about the next match,” he said as calmly as he could. “But I know that I'm close, you know. Only two matches, but it's long way.”

As he pushed past Felix Auger-Aliassime on Wednesday, he was breathing deeply and avoiding eye contact with his team before he served for the match. If he was nervous, his team were sitting on drawing pins. But he had already given himself a major pep talk after losing the first set of his 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, 6-4 win.

“I just said to myself to fight because I felt this is the chance of my life,” he told the crowd afterwards. “It's not usual to play the quarterfinal in Grand Slam. So I just said to myself, let's fight. You're here. You deserve it. Let's try. That's what I said. 

“And I think I did something different from the other [matches]. Just tried to stay calm and play my tennis. Today, in the last game, I think I played very good tennis with good serve and good first shot.”

It was sound advice and he obviously took it well. Then again, he has been looking for any little pointer or tip to help him on his way in Paris. From the superstition of using the same shower stall that Rafael Nadal (another man known for his routines and rituals) always used to the quirk of not changing the string tension in his rackets, regardless of the weather conditions, every day of his journey is adding to the 24-year-old’s experience. But now, as he plays the biggest match of his life, he is relying on something deep inside him, something that has always been a part of him.

“It depends how you live this kind of thing,” he said, sagely. “I think I never put pressure on myself. I like to live the moment like if I was a kid. Just with good, big passion, and a big smile. That's what I do also for the next round.”

Friends and rivals

And in that round, he will face his old pal, Matteo Arnaldi. They have played twice before with honours even, although Cobolli’s win came here last year in the second round. He won in four sets. Whether that makes a difference for two young men who have grown up together, who know each other’s games inside out and who have never been this far in a Grand Slam before, only time will tell. 

What we do know is that whatever it is that Arnaldi eats for breakfast, we should all try it.

He has already spent 19 hours and 42 minutes on court to get this far and now he faces the biggest match of his career. Does he have anything left to give? Surprisingly, yes. Quite a lot left. After getting an early night when another of his friends, Matteo Berrettini, retired in the second set of their quarterfinal after two hours of play, Arnaldi was remarkably perky.

“I'm feeling pretty good, actually,” he said, cheerily. “Obviously it was a question mark today, because I played two long matches in a row, but yesterday I didn't play tennis. I just came here, did some physio and some stuff in the gym. Today I was feeling actually pretty good.I can't complain.

“I have been playing a lot, but at the same time, I'm happy to be on court and to spend time on court, because I miss the playing. I for sure have some energy left for the next matches.”

Playing his friends in big matches is becoming a habit for the 25-year-old world No.104 (his career high is No.30 but injuries have knocked him back). The Italians are like a band of brothers and with 11 of them in the top 150, their paths cross regularly. He first met Cobolli in the junior ranks and they have been friends ever since. 

“We are good friends,” Arnaldi said. “We practise a lot together. We played a lot since we were, like, 12, 11. We know each other very well.

“It's going to be a tough one, obviously. We both played a lot. I played a little bit more, but I hope it's going to be a good fight. But at the same time, I hope it's going to be a good match to watch and to enjoy on court, as well, for both.”

And win or lose, Italy will get its finalist.