Azzurri Court Icon Nicola Pietrangeli Has Died at the Age of 92
The tennis champion stands as one of only three Italian men to secure a major singles title.
Italian sport says goodbye to a authentic legend: Nicola Pietrangeli, a double French Open champion, left us at the age of 92.
Pietrangeli etched his name by emerging as the initial Italian to capture a Grand Slam singles title, securing his maiden triumph at the French Open in 1959 and retaining the prestigious trophy a year later.
With a staggering 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was long held to be the country's most accomplished player prior to the rise of current world number two and four-times major winner Jannik Sinner.
"Italian tennis is mourning an legend. Nicola Pietrangeli, the sole Italian inducted in the International Tennis Hall of Fame, has died," confirmed the national federation.
In addition to his pair of French Open victories, Pietrangeli also reached the final in Paris in both 1961 and 1964.
He holds a record 164 matches played for Italy in the Davis Cup, 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 two-time winner, said: "We are profoundly saddened that we bid farewell to Nicola Pietrangeli, a veritable legend of Italian tennis..."
