After knocking out France in the quarter-finals, Belgium's tennis players were narrowly beaten by Italy in the semi-finals of this major tournament, bringing together the world's top eight tennis-playing nations.
This year's Davis Cup Final 8 was held in Bologna, Italy, with the host country also playing against the Belgian team in the semi-finals.
While Raphaël Collignon (ATP 86) could not perform any miracles against the experienced Matteo Berrettini (ATP 56) in the first match (def. 6-3, 6-4), Zizou Bergs (ATP 43) was only very narrowly beaten by Flavio Cobolli (ATP 22).
It was only after a long fight, lasting 3 hours 6 minutes, that the Belgian number one eventually succumbed to his opponent, at the end of a seemingly endless third-set tiebreak, finishing on a score of 17-15. Zizou Bergs was visibly inconsolable after this decisive meeting – a match he could well have won, with the athlete from Lommel (province of Limburg) earning himself no fewer than seven match points.
The Belgian team exited the Davis Cup 2025 with their heads held high, faced with the future winners of the competition, with Italy being crowned champions for the third year in a row. They can all be proud of their magnificent run, qualifying for the Final 8, and in particular of their impressive victory against France in the quarter-finals, with unexpected wins for Raphaël Collignon over Corentin Moutet (2-6, 7-5, 7-5) and for Zizou Bergs over Arthur Rinderknech (6-3, 7-6).
Congratulations to our newly christened Red Aces!
