ITALY: Italian veteran athlete Fabio Fognini made his final appearance at the Italian Open with a first-round match against Jacob Fearnley of Great Britain. This was Fognini’s 18th main draw appearance in Rome, in the tournament that has been an integral part of his sporting career.
The athlete recently announced that he will retire from the sport and that the Italian Open will be his last event. With this, fans watched the athlete more closely as Fognini played his one last memorable match in front of his home crowd.
In an interview with Tennis Channel’s Prakash Amritraj, Fabio Fognini appeared composed and in good spirits as he reflected on his career. He said: “Since I was a kid, I was coming here to see oh, ‘Let’s hope to play one day.’ Now I’m opposite way. I think it’s a good time to say goodbye in this beautiful city.”
He added: “I’m here with a smile in my face because I know that I have a really difficult time in my 15, 16, 20 years here in Rome. I would like to enjoy the last lap.”
When asked about his most memorable victory in Rome, Fognini shared his match against former Grand Slam champion and rival Andy Murray.
He stated: “One is for sure the victory in the night against Andy Murray when he was No. 1 in the world. This one is in a special place, especially here in Rome. It’s one of the top three in my career. Actually I have two with Murray, one here and one in Davis Cup in Italy. So thank you Andy for letting me enjoy!”
Fognini was ranked No. 107 when he arrived at this year’s Italian Open. He then discussed embracing whatever comes next in his life after tennis and holding on to the joy that has defined his time on his tennis journey.
“Of course I have to sit down having a coffee or maybe a good wine to see what the future bring me,” he admitted.
He then joked: “The next step of my career… It’s something I really fight (about) with my manager.”
A social media post made by Internazionali BNL d’Italia said: “End of an era… One last battle in Rome for Fognini — passion, classe and a whole lot of cuore 💙 A chapter closes, but the legacy lives on. Grazie, Fabio 🇮🇹🎩”
Netizens showed their support in the comments and stated: “The Fog is the most Italian man of all time. Very entertaining and did things in his own way. Enjoy the next chapter”, Thank you for everything, maestro! (translated)”, and “Fabio ❤️ you’ve always been a serious and humble player, proud that you represent my Italy 🇮🇹 (translated)”