Azzurri Court Great Nicola Pietrangeli Dies at 92
Nicola Pietrangeli is one of only three Italian men to win a major singles title.
Italian sport mourns a genuine pioneer: Nicola Pietrangeli, a two-time French Open champion, left us at ninety-two.
The player made history by emerging as the pioneering Italian to secure a Grand Slam singles title, earning his maiden triumph at the French Open in 1959 and retaining the prestigious trophy in 1960.
With an impressive 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was widely considered the country's most accomplished player until the rise of current world number two and four-time major winner Jannik Sinner.
"Italian tennis is grieving an icon. Nicola Pietrangeli, the only Italian inducted in the International Tennis Hall of Fame, has died," announced the Italian Tennis Federation.
Beyond his pair of French Open victories, Pietrangeli also finished as runner-up in Paris in both 1961 and 1964.
He set a record 164 matches played for Italy in the Davis Cup, securing victories in 120 of them, and spearheaded his country to its first title in 1976.
Organisers of the Italian Open, an event where he was a double winner, commented: "It is with deep sadness that we bid farewell to Nicola Pietrangeli, a veritable legend of Italian tennis..."