Azzurri Court Great Nicola Pietrangeli Dies at Ninety-Two
Nicola Pietrangeli is among a select trio of Italian men to claim a major singles title.
Italian sport is mourning a authentic icon: Nicola Pietrangeli, a double French Open champion, passed away at 92.
Pietrangeli etched his name by becoming the initial Italian to win a Grand Slam singles title, earning his first triumph at Roland Garros in 1959 and retaining the coveted trophy the following year.
With a remarkable 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was long held to be the country's most accomplished player until the rise of current world number two and four-time major winner Jannik Sinner.
"Italian tennis is in mourning for an legend. Nicola Pietrangeli, the sole Italian enrolled in the World Tennis Hall of Fame, has passed away," announced the national federation.
Beyond his two French Open triumphs, Pietrangeli also was the finalist in Paris in the years 1961 and 1964.
He boasts 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, an event where he was a double winner, stated: "We are profoundly saddened that we bid farewell to Nicola Pietrangeli, a true legend of Italian tennis..."