Azzurri Court Icon Nicola Pietrangeli Passes Away at Ninety-Two
The tennis champion remains one of only three Italian men to win a major singles title.
The world of tennis says goodbye to a true pioneer: Nicola Pietrangeli, a two-time French Open champion, passed away at ninety-two.
Pietrangeli etched his name by emerging as the initial Italian to secure a Grand Slam singles title, achieving his first triumph at Roland Garros in 1959 and retaining the prestigious trophy in 1960.
With a remarkable 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was universally regarded as the nation's most accomplished player prior to the emergence of current world number two and four-time major winner Jannik Sinner.
"Italian tennis is mourning an legend. Nicola Pietrangeli, the only Italian enrolled in the International Tennis Hall of Fame, has passed away," stated the national federation.
Alongside his pair of French Open victories, Pietrangeli also was the finalist 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 led his country to its inaugural title in 1976.
Organisers of the Italian Open, an event where he was a two-time winner, commented: "We are profoundly saddened that we bid farewell to Nicola Pietrangeli, a true legend of Italian tennis..."