Azzurri Court Great Nicola Pietrangeli Has Died at 92
The tennis champion remains one of only three Italian men to secure a Grand Slam singles title.
Italian sport says goodbye to a genuine legend: Nicola Pietrangeli, a double French Open champion, left us at ninety-two.
He carved his legacy by becoming the initial Italian to secure a Grand Slam singles title, securing his maiden triumph at Roland Garros in 1959 and retaining the prestigious trophy a year later.
With a staggering 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was universally regarded as the nation's greatest ever player prior to the emergence of current star and four-time major winner Jannik Sinner.
"The sport in Italy is in mourning for an titan. Nicola Pietrangeli, the only Italian enrolled in the International Tennis Hall of Fame, has passed away," announced the Italian Tennis Federation.
Alongside his two French Open successes, Pietrangeli also was the finalist 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 led his country to its first title in 1976.
Officials of the Italian Open, an event where he was a two-time winner, stated: "It is with deep sadness that we say goodbye to Nicola Pietrangeli, a veritable legend of Italian tennis..."
