Azzurri Court Icon Nicola Pietrangeli Has Died at Ninety-Two
Nicola Pietrangeli remains among a select trio of Italian men to secure a Grand Slam singles title.
Italian sport mourns a true icon: Nicola Pietrangeli, a double French Open champion, has died at 92.
Pietrangeli etched his name by emerging as the first Italian to capture a Grand Slam singles title, earning his first triumph at Roland Garros in 1959 and retaining the coveted trophy a year later.
With a remarkable 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was long held to be the nation's finest player prior to the advent of current world number two and four-times major winner Jannik Sinner.
"Italian tennis is in mourning for an legend. Nicola Pietrangeli, the sole Italian enrolled in the International Tennis Hall of Fame, has passed away," stated the Italian Tennis Federation.
In addition to his pair of French Open successes, Pietrangeli also finished as runner-up in Paris in both 1961 and 1964.
He holds a remarkable 164 matches played for Italy in the prestigious team competition, securing victories in 120 of them, and guided his country to its first title in 1976.
Officials of the Italian Open, where he was a double winner, commented: "We are profoundly saddened that we bid farewell to Nicola Pietrangeli, a veritable legend of Italian tennis..."
