Azzurri Court Great Nicola Pietrangeli Has Died at Ninety-Two
The tennis champion remains one of only three Italian men to win a major singles title.
The world of tennis is mourning a authentic pioneer: Nicola Pietrangeli, a double French Open champion, passed away at 92.
Pietrangeli etched his name by becoming the pioneering Italian to win a Grand Slam singles title, earning his first triumph at the French Open in 1959 and successfully defending the coveted trophy in 1960.
With a remarkable 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was universally regarded as the country's greatest ever player until the emergence of current world number two and four-time major winner Jannik Sinner.
"Italian tennis is mourning an legend. Nicola Pietrangeli, the sole Italian enrolled in the World Tennis Hall of Fame, has passed away," confirmed the national federation.
Beyond his pair of French Open successes, Pietrangeli also finished as runner-up in Paris in the years 1961 and 1964.
He boasts a remarkable 164 matches played for Italy in the prestigious team competition, winning 120 of them, and led his country to its maiden title in 1976.
Organisers of the Italian Open, an event where he was a two-time winner, stated: "It is with deep sadness that we say goodbye to Nicola Pietrangeli, a veritable legend of Italian tennis..."
