Azzurri Court Icon Nicola Pietrangeli Dies at the Age of 92
The tennis champion is among a select trio of Italian men to secure a major singles title.
Italian sport is mourning a authentic pioneer: Nicola Pietrangeli, a two-time French Open champion, has died at ninety-two.
Pietrangeli etched his name by becoming the pioneering Italian to secure a Grand Slam singles title, earning his first triumph at the French Open in 1959 and successfully defending the coveted trophy the following year.
With a staggering 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was widely considered the nation's greatest ever player prior to the emergence of current star and four-time major winner Jannik Sinner.
"The sport in Italy is grieving an titan. Nicola Pietrangeli, the only Italian honored in the World Tennis Hall of Fame, has passed away," announced the national federation.
In addition to his pair of French Open triumphs, Pietrangeli also reached the final in Paris in the years 1961 and 1964.
He set a record 164 matches played for Italy in the Davis Cup, securing victories in 120 of them, and led 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 say goodbye to Nicola Pietrangeli, a true legend of Italian tennis..."
