Azzurri Tennis Great Nicola Pietrangeli Dies at Ninety-Two
The tennis champion stands as one of only three Italian men to secure a major singles title.
Italian sport mourns a genuine legend: Nicola Pietrangeli, a double French Open champion, left us at 92.
He carved his legacy by becoming the pioneering Italian to secure a Grand Slam singles title, achieving his first triumph at Roland Garros in 1959 and retaining the coveted trophy a year later.
With a staggering 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was widely considered the country's finest player until the advent of current star and four-time major winner Jannik Sinner.
"Italian tennis is in mourning for an legend. Nicola Pietrangeli, the sole Italian inducted in the World Tennis Hall of Fame, has passed away," stated the national federation.
Beyond his two French Open triumphs, Pietrangeli also reached the final in Paris in both 1961 and 1964.
He holds a remarkable 164 matches played for Italy in the Davis Cup, securing victories in 120 of them, and guided his country to its inaugural title in 1976.
Organisers 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 veritable legend of Italian tennis..."
