Azzurri Tennis Icon Nicola Pietrangeli Dies at Ninety-Two
The tennis champion stands as one of only three Italian men to win a major singles title.
Italian sport mourns a true icon: Nicola Pietrangeli, a two-time French Open champion, left us at the age of 92.
The player made history by emerging as the initial Italian to secure a Grand Slam singles title, securing his first 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 finest player until the emergence of current world number two and four-times major winner Jannik Sinner.
"The sport in Italy is mourning an icon. Nicola Pietrangeli, the sole Italian honored in the International Tennis Hall of Fame, has died," announced the Italian Tennis Federation.
Alongside his pair of French Open victories, Pietrangeli also was the finalist in Paris in the years 1961 and 1964.
He set a remarkable 164 matches played for Italy in the Davis Cup, securing victories in 120 of them, and spearheaded his country to its maiden title in 1976.
Organisers of the Italian Open, where he was a double winner, stated: "It is with deep sadness that we say goodbye to Nicola Pietrangeli, a true legend of Italian tennis..."
