Sinner, Berrettini take Italy past Australia, into Davis Cup final

MALAGA, Spain (AP) — Top-ranked Jannik Sinner and Matteo Berrettini won singles matches Saturday in front of a supportive crowd to lift defending champion Italy past Australia 2-0 and back into the Davis Cup final.

Sinner extended his tour-level winning streak to 24 sets in a row by beating No. 9 Alex de Minaur 6-3, 6-4 after Berrettini came back to defeat Thanasi Kokkinakis 6-7 (6), 6-3, 7-5.

"Hopefully this can give us confidence for tomorrow," said Sinner, now 9-0 against de Minaur.

Italy will meet first-time finalist Netherlands on Sunday for the title. The Dutch followed up their victory over Rafael Nadal and Spain in the quarterfinals by eliminating Germany in the semifinals on Friday.

Italy, which got past Australia in last year's final, is trying to become the first country 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 in Malaga on Wednesday.

___

AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis