Azzurri Tennis Icon Nicola Pietrangeli Passes Away at the Age of 92
The tennis champion is among a select trio of Italian men to claim a Grand Slam singles title.
Italian sport says goodbye to a authentic legend: Nicola Pietrangeli, a double French Open champion, passed away at ninety-two.
The player made history by becoming the first Italian to capture a Grand Slam singles title, earning his initial triumph at Roland Garros 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 until the emergence of current star and four-times major winner Jannik Sinner.
"The sport in Italy is in mourning for an titan. Nicola Pietrangeli, the sole Italian honored in the International Tennis Hall of Fame, has passed away," confirmed the national federation.
In addition to his pair of French Open victories, Pietrangeli also finished as runner-up in Paris in both 1961 and 1964.
He holds a record 164 matches played for Italy in the Davis Cup, winning 120 of them, and spearheaded his country to its inaugural title in 1976.
Organisers of the Italian Open, where he was a double winner, said: "We are profoundly saddened that we say goodbye to Nicola Pietrangeli, a veritable legend of Italian tennis..."
