Azzurri Court Icon Nicola Pietrangeli Has Died at 92
Nicola Pietrangeli stands as among a select trio of Italian men to secure a Grand Slam singles title.
Italian sport mourns a genuine legend: Nicola Pietrangeli, a two-time French Open champion, passed away at ninety-two.
He carved his legacy by becoming the initial Italian to capture a Grand Slam singles title, securing his initial triumph at Roland Garros in 1959 and successfully defending the prestigious trophy the following year.
With an impressive 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was long held to be the country's greatest ever player prior to the emergence of current world number two and four-times major winner Jannik Sinner.
"The sport in Italy is in mourning for an titan. Nicola Pietrangeli, the only Italian honored in the International Tennis Hall of Fame, has died," announced the national federation.
Beyond his pair of French Open successes, Pietrangeli also was the finalist in Paris in the years 1961 and 1964.
He set a record 164 matches played for Italy in the prestigious team competition, securing victories in 120 of them, and guided his country to its inaugural title in 1976.
Organisers of the Italian Open, where he was a two-time winner, stated: "We are profoundly saddened that we say goodbye to Nicola Pietrangeli, a true legend of Italian tennis..."
