Azzurri Tennis Great Nicola Pietrangeli Passes Away at 92
The tennis champion is among a select trio of Italian men to secure a major singles title.
Italian sport is mourning a genuine legend: Nicola Pietrangeli, a double French Open champion, passed away at 92.
The player made history by becoming the first Italian to secure a Grand Slam singles title, achieving his initial triumph at the French Open in 1959 and retaining the coveted trophy in 1960.
With a staggering 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was long held to be the nation's most accomplished player until the advent of current star and four-times major winner Jannik Sinner.
"The sport in Italy is grieving an titan. Nicola Pietrangeli, the sole Italian enrolled in the World Tennis Hall of Fame, has passed away," announced the national federation.
In addition to his pair of French Open successes, Pietrangeli also finished as runner-up in Paris in the years 1961 and 1964.
He holds a record 164 matches played for Italy in the prestigious team competition, winning 120 of them, and spearheaded his country to its first title in 1976.
Organisers of the Italian Open, where he was a double winner, said: "It is with deep sadness that we bid farewell to Nicola Pietrangeli, a true legend of Italian tennis..."
