Fabio Fognini is no stranger to the headlines. At 36, Fognini continues to make waves in tennis, choosing to compete in Challenger-level tournaments rather than stepping away from the sport he loves. He ended his season this year by winning a challenger event in Montemar. However, in the off-season, Fognini traded in his racquet for dancing shoes as he made his debut on the 19 season of ‘Ballando con le Stelle’ – Italy’s Dancing with the Stars. And the sweetest reaction has come from his biggest fan, his wife Flavia Pennetta.!

The Italian dance show, much like its British counterparts, pairs celebrities with professional dancers to learn different forms of ballroom dancing and compete for the trophy. The Italian player made a guest appearance on the show partnering up with star choreographer Giadi Lini and floored everyone with his fantastic performance on the song ‘Great Balls of Fire.’ Turns out her wife was all hearts for the performance! Literally! The former US Open champion commented numerous hearts on the video of the dance performance uploaded on Instagram.

The couple tied the knot on June 16 2016, and have three kids together. Pennetta is a successful player in her own right. She has a total 28 career titles and has reached a singles ranking of 6 while holding a No.1 ranking in doubles. The Italian WTA player was also awarded the Knight of Oder of Merlin of the Republic in 2007 by the Italian president.

It wasn’t just her who was impressed with the performance. Fabio Fognini’s fellow ATP player also expressed his feelings about the performance. The World No.2 tennis player Alexander Zverev was left awestruck by his performance. The German player took to his Instagram and shared a snippet of the performance with the caption “This is the single greatest thing I’ve seen this year @fabiofogna,” on his story.

Apart from dancing, Fognini is also passionate about soccer. He once revealed on ‘Behind the Racquet’ that he was fascinated by the sport. “My first passion was football. There were times I rather play football than tennis but it is tough to say that when tennis gave me this life.” He also shared why exactly he chose tennis as a profession and said, “Football was amazing but tennis gave me the responsibility I wanted. If I lose it is on me just like it is if I win.”

While Fognini’s dancing is winning over people, the 36-year-old is not always in the news for such wholesomeness.

Fabio Fognini’s journey through controversy and conflict

Fabio Fognini is known for his fiery temper. In 2017, he was thrown out of the US Open after being accused of shouting obscenities at a female umpire following his defeat to compatriot Stefano Travaglia. His frustration came from being beaten by Travaglia, who was a qualifier in the first round. This caused him to default in his doubles match. The Grand Slam board suspended Fognini for two majors and fined him $96,000.

In a similar incident, after his third-round defeat to Tennys Sandgren in the Wimbledon championships in 2019, the Italian player angrily said that Wimbledon should be bombed. In his rant, he said, “It’s fair to play here? Damn English, really. Damned, really, wish a bomb would explode on this club. A bomb should explode here.” He was fined $3000 for his outburst and he later apologized for it as well.

But this is not it. At the Tokyo Olympics, he repeatedly yelled out a well-known Italian homophobic slur. He issued an apology back then as well and wore a rainbow band to show his regret and support.

Fognini’s career has been full of fiery moments and surprising turns, like his dance floor debut. We can say by now that unpredictability is just part of the Fognini package. What do you think?