Azzurri Tennis Legend Nicola Pietrangeli Passes Away at Ninety-Two
The tennis champion is among a select trio of Italian men to secure a Grand Slam singles title.
Italian sport is mourning a true pioneer: Nicola Pietrangeli, a double French Open champion, has died at the age of 92.
Pietrangeli etched his name by emerging as the pioneering Italian to win a Grand Slam singles title, earning his initial triumph at the French Open in 1959 and retaining the coveted trophy a year later.
With an impressive 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was widely considered the country's most accomplished player prior to the advent of current world number two and four-time major winner Jannik Sinner.
"Italian tennis is mourning an legend. Nicola Pietrangeli, the sole Italian enrolled in the International Tennis Hall of Fame, has died," announced the national federation.
Alongside his two French Open triumphs, Pietrangeli also finished as runner-up in Paris in both 1961 and 1964.
He boasts a remarkable 164 matches played for Italy in the Davis Cup, securing victories in 120 of them, and spearheaded his country to its inaugural title in 1976.
Officials of the Italian Open, an event where he was a double winner, commented: "It is with deep sadness that we say goodbye to Nicola Pietrangeli, a veritable legend of Italian tennis..."