Flavio Cobolli Shares Heartfelt Reaction on Matteo Arnaldi’s Withdrawal from Roland Garros Semifinals

Flavio Cobolli reached his maiden Grand Slam final at Roland Garros on Friday, but the milestone came under bittersweet circumstances.

He was scheduled to play Matteo Arnaldi in what would’ve marked the first all-Italian Grand Slam semifinal; however, Arnaldi unfortunately had to withdraw from the match due to a viral illness.

Arnaldi had a stunning run at the tournament, where he reached his first Grand Slam semifinal after defeating several higher-ranked opponents like Tallon Griekspoor, Stefanos Tsitsipas, and Frances Tiafoe.

In the quarterfinal, Arnaldi was up by a set and a break when his opponent, Matteo Berrettini, was forced to retire from the match due to injury. Speaking about his compatriot, Cobolli commented at the press conference:

It’s tough for me to speak now. When he [Arnaldi] came to me almost one hour ago, I almost cried. It’s something that you don’t expect at all. I was ready to play this match. When he came, I was completely sad for him. But, at the same time, of course I’m really happy with the result that I reached this week. My dad also came to me right before him, and we had a big hug together with the whole team for achieving the Top 10. Every time that I make the best ranking, we all together have a big hug. We did the same routine as always. Now I’m sad and happy at the same time.

"When he came to me almost 1 hour ago, I almost cried."

Flavio Cobolli shares his reaction to Matteo Arnaldi's shocking withdrawal from the #RolandGarros Semifinals. pic.twitter.com/VZrY2S9Kco

— TNT Sports U.S. (@TNTSportsUS) June 5, 2026

Cobolli is only the fourth Italian man in the Open Era to reach a Grand Slam final after Adriano Panatta, Matteo Berrettini, and Jannik Sinner. The 24-year-old has had a great clay swing, reaching the final in Munich and the quarterfinals in Madrid prior to his Roland Garros campaign. In the final, Cobolli is set to face the second seed, Alexander Zverev.

Alexander Zverev leads the head-to-head 3-1 against Flavio Cobolli

Alexander Zverev has been on a quest for his maiden Grand Slam title after years of unsuccessful attempts. He reached his maiden Grand Slam final at the 2020 US Open, where he lost to Dominic Thiem in a five-set battle.

Zverev reached his next Grand Slam final at the 2024 Roland Garros, where he lost another five-set match to Carlos Alcaraz. Zverev lost the 2025 Australian Open final in straight sets to defending champion Jannik Sinner.

The German arrives at his fourth Grand Slam final as the overwhelming favorite, leading the head-to-head 3-1 against Flavio Cobolli and having won their most recent encounter in straight sets in the Madrid Open quarterfinal.

However, this has been the tournament of upsets and unexpected moments, so it wouldn’t be surprising to see Cobolli deny Zverev another Grand Slam title. In either scenario, this will mark the first Grand Slam champion outside of Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz since the 2023 US Open.

Flavio Cobolli will crack into the Top 10 for the first time

Flavio Cobolli, who entered Roland Garros at the ATP World No. 14 rank, is now at No. 10 in the live rankings. If the Italian wins the tournament, he will be at 4240 points and move up to No. 5.

Cobolli has had a wonderful season so far, winning an ATP 500 title in Acapulco and reaching the ATP 500 final in Munich. He has reached three ATP tour-level finals in a season for the first time in his career. He’s had a great run at Roland Garros, with wins over players like Felix Auger-Aliassime and Learner Tien.

Also Read: Flavio Cobolli Reveals ‘Crazy’ Rafael Nadal Shower Superstition After Reaching Roland Garros Semifinal