Flavio Cobolli made an urgent dash to the bathroom during his Wimbledon third-round match against Karen Khachanov, after experiencing stomach troubles that saw him lose the first set 6-0 in just 18 minutes. The Italian returned to Court 2 following a medical consultation and a toilet break, then fought back to win 0-6, 7-6(4), 6-7(5), 6-2, 6-2 in a dramatic five-set victory.
Stomach issues strike early
Speaking on court after securing his spot in the fourth round, the No. 9 seed said: "I felt some strange feelings in my stomach and then the doctor helped me. When I came back from the bathroom I was ok." The interviewer chuckled, adding: "Maybe a little bit too much information." Cobolli continued: "Now I'm just tired. Not any more with the stomach. I am looking forward to the next one."
Comeback and celebration
After losing the opening set in 18 minutes, Cobolli fought for one hour and 10 minutes without interruption to win the second-set tie-break. He then completed the comeback, taking the fourth and fifth sets 6-2 each. Following the win, he dashed back onto the court to mimic Manchester United forward Matheus Cunha's goal celebration—crouching down, arms out wide, and shimmying side to side as the crowd applauded.
Explaining the celebration, Cobolli said: "It was a bet with my coach. We were watching the World Cup and this is the Brazilian striker that I love to repeat. It's three days late to do this but today I couldn't forget." He added that he would treat his team to dinner after pocketing £300,000 in prize money: "Now is time to recover. I'm going to have a good dinner with the team, I'll pay, and it's a good time to celebrate this amazing win."
