Azzurri Tennis Great Nicola Pietrangeli Has Died at the Age of 92
The tennis champion stands as among a select trio of Italian men to win a Grand Slam singles title.
The world of tennis says goodbye to a genuine legend: Nicola Pietrangeli, a double French Open champion, left us at ninety-two.
The player made history by emerging as the initial Italian to capture a Grand Slam singles title, achieving his maiden triumph at the French Open in 1959 and successfully defending the prestigious trophy in 1960.
With a staggering 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was long held to be the nation's greatest ever player until the rise of current world number two and four-times major winner Jannik Sinner.
"Italian tennis is mourning an legend. Nicola Pietrangeli, the only Italian honored in the World Tennis Hall of Fame, has died," announced the national federation.
Beyond his pair of French Open triumphs, Pietrangeli also finished as runner-up in Paris in both 1961 and 1964.
He holds a remarkable 164 matches played for Italy in the prestigious team competition, 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, stated: "We are profoundly saddened that we bid farewell to Nicola Pietrangeli, a veritable legend of Italian tennis..."
