Wimbledon’s iconic grass courts played host to a breakout day for Italian tennis on Monday, as rising star Flavio Cobolli booked his quarterfinal spot with a dramatic straight-sets upset of fifth seed Alex de Minaur — capped off by a viral celebration that had the Centre Court crowd roaring in unison.
Closing out his 7-5, 7-6(4), 6-3 victory on No.1 Court, Cobolli fired a blistering 135 mph first serve straight down the T that landed perfectly on the line, leaving the Australian de Minaur with a limp return that never cleared his own service box. The 20-something Italian immediately leaped into the air, pumped his fist, and hit a celebratory ball into the stands before turning to shake hands with his defeated opponent. What came next, though, was the moment that cemented the win in tournament lore: dropping his racket, Cobolli moved back to the center of the court and recreated Cristiano Ronaldo’s world-famous soccer goal celebration — spinning mid-air before landing with his feet spread wide and jerking his arms down to his sides. The largely British crowd recognized the celebration instantly, joining in to shout the iconic “Siuuu” along with him.
For Cobolli, the tribute was far more than a viral stunt: the Italian was once a promising youth soccer prospect in AS Roma’s academy, and he remains a diehard fan of Ronaldo. “I love his celebration. I love him,” Cobolli told reporters after the match, adding that he would be cheering for Portugal against Spain in that night’s World Cup match. This is not the first time the rising tennis star has leaned on soccer for his post-win routines: after his previous round victory, he celebrated with a surfing-themed tribute borrowed from Brazilian striker Matheus Cunha.
Cobolli’s breakthrough win marks another career milestone for the Italian, who turned heads earlier this year by pushing all the way to the French Open final, where he took Alexander Zverev to five tight sets. Against de Minaur — widely regarded as one of the most consistent top-10 players on tour this season — Cobolli defied the odds: de Minaur held a 5-2 lead in the second set and earned two separate service breaks in the third, but Cobolli clawed his way back to claim the straight-sets upset. “Alex is a stratospheric player. So beating him three sets to none makes me feel like I’m ready,” Cobolli said. “This gave me a lot of answers, and I think it provided a lot of answers to my opponents, too.”
The win also forced a last-minute change of plans for his support team: Cobolli’s family had only booked accommodation through the tournament’s first week, so his grandfather scrambled to find a new rental in Wimbledon village after the upset. A local Italian family stepped in to offer a home, allowing Cobolli to keep his beloved pre-World Cup nightly routine intact: a home-cooked dinner prepared by his father and coach Stefano, shared with best friend Edoardo Bove (Watford’s Italian midfielder), followed by a tub of his tournament go-to gelato — pear and white chocolate. Next up, Cobolli will face Britain’s home hope Arthur Fery, a 23-year-old who grew up just five minutes from the All England Club, for a spot in the semifinals.
Cobolli was not the only Italian to advance to the quarterfinals on Monday. Over on Centre Court, Jasmine Paolini fought past rising Filipino star Alexandra Eala 6-4, 4-6, 6-3 to secure her first Grand Slam quarterfinal berth since her back-to-back runs to the finals of Roland Garros and Wimbledon two years ago. Eala entered the match riding a wave of momentum after upsetting defending champion Iga Swiatek in the previous round, but Paolini held firm through a grueling third set to claim the win.
Paolini had no shortage of star power watching from the stands: 19-year-old Italian Formula 1 rising star Kimi Antonelli, who currently leads the drivers’ standings for Mercedes, watched from the Royal Box, seated right next to eight-time Wimbledon champion Roger Federer. Paolini admitted after the match that Federer’s presence almost threw her off her game. “He is my idol,” Paolini said in an on-court interview. “I was like during the match, ‘Please stay focused, stay focused. Don’t think about he’s here.’ I was watching all the finals and all the tournaments he was playing here.” She later added that she had met Antonelli after the win, saying “I’ve been following him a lot lately. I’m becoming an F1 fan. He seems like a real nice kid and very down to earth.”
Paolini will next face Ukraine’s Marta Kostyuk, who beat American qualifier Ashlyn Krueger 6-4, 6-4 to reach her first Wimbledon quarterfinal. The day’s play unfolded on the hottest day of the 2024 tournament so far, with temperatures hitting 32 degrees Celsius (90 degrees Fahrenheit), forcing players to cool down with ice bags around their necks during changeovers.
The strong showing from Italian tennis at Wimbledon comes on the heels of a similar breakout run at this year’s French Open, where three Italian men reached the quarterfinals despite defending champion Jannik Sinner’s early second-round exit in Paris’ record heat. Notably, Italy’s men’s national soccer team has failed to qualify for three consecutive World Cups, a long drought for the four-time champions, but a new generation of Italian athletes across tennis, Formula 1, and other sports have stepped into the spotlight to carry the country’s sporting legacy. Alongside Sinner (who will compete for a semifinal spot on Tuesday against Jan-Lennard Struff) and Antonelli, Cobolli and Paolini’s deep runs at Wimbledon have cemented this new wave of Italian sporting stardom.