Cobolli makes maiden Grand Slam quarter-final after Cilic victory
The Italian reached a huge career milestone on Monday.
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Flavio Cobolli reached his first Grand Slam quarter-final after defeating Marin Cilic 6-4, 6-4, 6-7 (4), 7-6 (3) in the fourth round of Wimbledon.
The Italian is now confirmed to rise to a new career-high ranking of world No 19, and could climb higher if his run continues.
Coming into the match, it was Cilic who had a more impressive run – most notably defeating world No 4 Jak Draper in the second round. Additionally, the Croat is a former Wimbledon finalist and is at his most dangerous on the slick surface.
However, Cobolli collected his third win over the 2014 US Open champion, who suffers defeats in back-to-back Grand Slams to the Italian.
For a player who many think is a clay-court specialist, Cobolli is looking increasingly comfortable on the grass at just 22-years-old.
Cobolli: “You cannot imagine my emotions”
“I always dreamed to be here and play this tournament,” Cobolli said during an emotional post-match interview.
“You cannot imagine my emotions right now because I always wanted to play tennis for these kind of matches, these kind of tournaments and now I’m very proud of myself and my team. I have all of my family here so it’s very special, my dad is crying (laughs).
“It’s a moment that I won’t forget and I’m very happy and looking forward to the quarter-final and, hopefully, play on a big court this time because I never played there and now I think I deserve it.”
For the match, Cobolli won a highly impressive 78 percent of his first serve points, with the Croatian on 71 percent.
Both players had eight break point opportunities, but it was the victory who converted three, with Cilic doing so on just one occasion.
“Now it’s time to rest,” admitted the maiden quarter-finalist.
“Marin is a big player, a legend of the sport and it’s a pleasure to share the court with him, but now I’m a little bit tired and have to recover for the next round.
“I tried to play my game because I think that this is the key for the world No 1, 2, and 3 in the world, the legends of this sport, so I think I played my game, tried to be aggressive every point, with great attitude – I was focused, I was solid, I think I played a very good match.”
The Italian will next face the winner of the fourth-round clash between Novak Djokovic and Alex de Minaur.
