FLAVIO COBOLLI’S dad and brother burst into tears live on the BBC after the Italian reached the Wimbledon quarter-finals.
The No22 seed beat Jack Draper’s conqueror and 2017 finalist Marin Cilic 6-4 6-4 6-7 7-6 on No2 Court on Monday.
That guaranteed his place in the final eight of a Grand Slam for the first time in his career.
And while the former Roma academy footballer kept his composure in the celebrations, his family could not contain their emotion.
The TV cameras cut to Cobolli’s dad and ex-professional tennis player Stefano sobbing into a towel.
His brother Guglielmo also welled up in the wonderful scenes at Wimbledon.
And the 23-year-old told the No2 Court crowd: “I always dreamed to be here and play this tournament.
“You cannot imagine my emotion right now, this is why I play tennis.
“I am proud of myself and my team.
“I have all my family here so it is very special.
“My dad is crying right now, [so is] my brother.”
The BBC cameras then cut to Stefano Cobolli, who reached a career-high ranking of No236 in 2003.
He then used the towel to dab and dry his eyes as his other son gave him an encouraging and supportive squeeze of the arm.
Cobolli will face either his “idol” Novak Djokovic or Alex De Minaur in the quarter-finals on Wednesday.
He added: “I’m hoping for a big court because I’ve never played there – and I think now I deserve it!”
Read the full article here