Azzurri Court Great Nicola Pietrangeli Has Died at Ninety-Two
The tennis champion remains among a select trio of Italian men to secure a Grand Slam singles title.
The world of tennis says goodbye to a authentic legend: Nicola Pietrangeli, a double French Open champion, has died at the age of 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 a year later.
With a staggering 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was universally regarded as the country's greatest ever player until the advent of current world number two and four-times major winner Jannik Sinner.
"The sport in Italy is grieving an titan. Nicola Pietrangeli, the only Italian enrolled in the World Tennis Hall of Fame, has passed away," announced the Italian Tennis Federation.
In addition to his two French Open victories, Pietrangeli also finished as runner-up in Paris in both 1961 and 1964.
He set a record 164 matches played for Italy in the prestigious team competition, securing victories in 120 of them, and led his country to its maiden title in 1976.
Organisers of the Italian Open, an event where he was a double winner, commented: "We are profoundly saddened that we bid farewell to Nicola Pietrangeli, a true legend of Italian tennis..."
