Azzurri Court Great Nicola Pietrangeli Passes Away at 92
Nicola Pietrangeli stands as one of only three Italian men to secure a major singles title.
Italian sport says goodbye to a genuine icon: Nicola Pietrangeli, a two-time French Open champion, passed away at ninety-two.
Pietrangeli etched his name by emerging as the first Italian to capture a Grand Slam singles title, achieving his maiden triumph at the French Open in 1959 and retaining the coveted trophy a year later.
With a staggering 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was long held to be the nation's most accomplished player prior to the advent of current world number two and four-times major winner Jannik Sinner.
"Italian tennis is in mourning for an icon. Nicola Pietrangeli, the sole Italian enrolled in the World Tennis Hall of Fame, has died," confirmed the Italian Tennis Federation.
Alongside his pair of French Open victories, Pietrangeli also finished as runner-up 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.
Organisers of the Italian Open, where he was a two-time winner, stated: "It is with deep sadness that we bid farewell to Nicola Pietrangeli, a true legend of Italian tennis..."
