🔗 Share this article Azzurri Tennis Legend Nicola Pietrangeli Dies at 92 The tennis champion stands as one of only three Italian men to claim a Grand Slam singles title. Italian sport says goodbye to a authentic legend: Nicola Pietrangeli, a two-time French Open champion, has died at ninety-two. Pietrangeli etched his name by emerging as the first Italian to capture a Grand Slam singles title, securing his initial triumph at Roland Garros in 1959 and successfully defending the coveted trophy in 1960. With a staggering 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was widely considered the country's finest player prior to the emergence of current world number two and four-time 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 passed away," announced the national federation. Alongside his pair of French Open triumphs, Pietrangeli also finished as runner-up in Paris in the years 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, where he was a two-time winner, said: "It is with deep sadness that we bid farewell to Nicola Pietrangeli, a veritable legend of Italian tennis..."
The tennis champion stands as one of only three Italian men to claim a Grand Slam singles title. Italian sport says goodbye to a authentic legend: Nicola Pietrangeli, a two-time French Open champion, has died at ninety-two. Pietrangeli etched his name by emerging as the first Italian to capture a Grand Slam singles title, securing his initial triumph at Roland Garros in 1959 and successfully defending the coveted trophy in 1960. With a staggering 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was widely considered the country's finest player prior to the emergence of current world number two and four-time 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 passed away," announced the national federation. Alongside his pair of French Open triumphs, Pietrangeli also finished as runner-up in Paris in the years 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, where he was a two-time winner, said: "It is with deep sadness that we bid farewell to Nicola Pietrangeli, a veritable legend of Italian tennis..."