Azzurri Tennis Great Nicola Pietrangeli Has Died at Ninety-Two
The tennis champion remains among a select trio of Italian men to claim a Grand Slam singles title.
Italian sport is mourning a authentic icon: Nicola Pietrangeli, a double French Open champion, passed away at 92.
Pietrangeli etched his name by emerging as the first Italian to capture a Grand Slam singles title, securing his first triumph at Roland Garros in 1959 and retaining the coveted trophy a year later.
With a staggering 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was universally regarded as the country's finest player prior to the emergence of current star and four-time major winner Jannik Sinner.
"The sport in Italy is in mourning for an titan. Nicola Pietrangeli, the only Italian honored in the World Tennis Hall of Fame, has died," confirmed the Italian Tennis Federation.
Beyond his pair of French Open victories, Pietrangeli also reached the final in Paris in the years 1961 and 1964.
He holds a record 164 matches played for Italy in the Davis Cup, securing victories in 120 of them, and guided his country to its maiden title in 1976.
Officials of the Italian Open, an event where he was a double winner, commented: "We are profoundly saddened that we bid farewell to Nicola Pietrangeli, a veritable legend of Italian tennis..."
