Flavio Cobolli is the ATP World #13 and one of the most rapidly improving players in professional tennis. The young Italian right-hander has climbed the rankings at a rate that has attracted serious attention from the tour’s top players, and his presence inside the top fifteen so early in his career places him at the centre of an Italian tennis generation that is arguably the strongest the country has produced.
His forehand is heavy and consistent, struck with enough topspin to push opponents behind the baseline and generate the high balls to the backhand side that he then attacks. His serve generates good angles and pace for a player still filling out physically, and on clay and hard courts, where he has built his best results, the combination of baseline depth and court speed makes him difficult to outlast across three or five sets.
What separates players who climb quickly to the top fifteen from players who stay there is the ability to find new ways to win when opponents have adjusted. Cobolli is young enough that this is still being written. He has the physical tools. How he responds to that challenge, and whether he develops the serve or the net game or the backhand as additional weapons, will determine the ceiling of his career.
Italy’s position in men’s tennis right now is unusual: multiple players inside the top fifteen, a packed Davis Cup roster, genuine depth at every surface. Within that group, Cobolli is young enough to be the one whose best years are still clearly ahead. The expectation from within Italy is not simply that he will hold his current ranking but that he will climb further into the elite tier.
Cobolli will compete at the 2026 Grand Slams: the Australian Open, Roland Garros, Wimbledon, and the US Open. Check Italy time for match schedules in his home timezone.