Whenever the Italian national team has chosen the Monte Urpinu tennis complex as the venue for its matches, it has always won. From Davis' first success in 1968 to the prestigious Fed Cup title in 2013, the story of a "magic" club that has never known defeat
A famous proverb reads: "Lucky in the game, unlucky in love". False, at least half. Because in Sardinia, where love for the sport of racket has no boundaries, there is a positive karma that seems to guide our players every time they touch the island's soil.
Perhaps this is why, to inaugurate the season of major tennis events scheduled in Italy in 2023, the splendid scenery of the Cagliari Tennis Club was chosen where, from 1 to 7 May, the "Sardinia Open" is scheduled, a premium event of the newborn Challenger 175 category.
In over half a century of activity - the club located in the splendid park of Monte Urpinu was founded in 1964 - it has hosted five matches of Italy in the Davis Cup and the 2013 Fed Cup final won against Russia.
Italy celebrated their fourth triumph in women's Davis Cup, giving captain Corrado Barazzutti the chance to equal the success record of Vicky Berner and the legendary Billie Jean King, both captains of the United States. That final began, speaking of luck, with the four match points saved by Roberta Vinci against Alexandra Panova. Later Sara Errani came to prominence, who in two days, driven by the unleashed cheer of Cagliari and her companions Flavia Pennetta and Francesca Schiavone, managed to dominate Irina Khromacheva and Alisa Klejbanova.
But, if that Fed Cup triumph was undoubtedly the most prestigious challenge hosted by the club of the Sardinian capital, we cannot forget the five matches that the Davis Cup national team chose to play at the Cagliari Tennis Club.
The "first" of this unforgettable five was staged in May 1968 with a peremptory 5-0 victory over Hungary. A lucky debut which then led the Azzurri to beat Monaco and the Soviet Union, before surrendering in the final of the European Zone A 3-2 against Spain. That match is remembered above all for a great performance by the record holder of the event Nicola Pietrangeli, assisted for the occasion by the Australian naturalized Italian tennis player Martin Mulligan.
The list of challenges continues with the 3-1 trimmed against Chile in October 1985 with Claudio Panatta, Francesco Cancellotti and, in doubles, Gianni Ocleppo, protagonists on the Cagliari red clay.
But the most famous chapter was written in February 1990 with a memorable 3-2 trimmed against the Swedish champions. Paolo Canè's success over then world number one Mats Wilander remains iconic, obtained in the fifth set after a battle that began on Sunday and ended on Monday. An exciting match that many Italians remember for live television but that many Sardinian fans can say they have seen live.
In April 2004, the Azzurri returned to Tc Cagliari with Andreas Seppi, Giorgio Galimberti and Alessio Di Mauro to beat Irakli Labadze's Georgia 3-2. In that year, Italy had dropped to Group II and, right from the first round challenge in Cagliari, the run-up to return to Group I the following year began.
In March 2009 another success, the fourth on clay at the Monte Urpino club, against Slovakia, beaten 4-1 with a great protagonist Fabio Fognini, assisted by Potito Starace and Flavio Cipolla.
The magical Davis five is completed with the 4-0 triumph against South Korea in March 2020 in the preliminaries that qualify for the final group stage in the new Davis format. The point brought by the double format by Fognini and Bolelli was decisive in a match that is remembered - as well as for the fact that it was played behind closed doors due to the coronavirus emergency - also for Stefano Travaglia's singles debut in blue.
And, Davis aside, in 2021 the confirmation of the lucky star of the Cagliari sky also arrived after the all-blue triumph in the ATP 250 tournament by Lorenzo Sonego in singles and by the Sonego-Vavassori duo in doubles.
And who knows if the Sardinian blindfolded goddess will also give a smile to Lorenzo Musetti, Lorenzo Sonego or Marco Cecchinato, possible blue protagonists of the first edition of the "Super Challenger".