🔗 Share this article Azzurri Court Legend Nicola Pietrangeli Has Died at 92 Nicola Pietrangeli is one of only three Italian men to win a Grand Slam singles title. Italian sport says goodbye to a genuine legend: Nicola Pietrangeli, a two-time French Open champion, passed away at 92. The player made history by emerging as the pioneering Italian to win a Grand Slam singles title, earning his initial triumph at the French Open in 1959 and successfully defending the coveted trophy in 1960. With a staggering 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was universally regarded as the country's greatest ever player prior to the advent of current star and four-time major winner Jannik Sinner. "The sport in Italy is mourning an icon. Nicola Pietrangeli, the sole Italian enrolled in the World Tennis Hall of Fame, has passed away," confirmed the national federation. In addition to his pair of French Open successes, Pietrangeli also was the finalist in Paris in both 1961 and 1964. He boasts a record 164 matches played for Italy in the prestigious team competition, winning 120 of them, and spearheaded his country to its maiden title in 1976. Organisers of the Italian Open, an event where he was a double winner, said: "It is with deep sadness that we bid farewell to Nicola Pietrangeli, a veritable legend of Italian tennis..."
Nicola Pietrangeli is one of only three Italian men to win a Grand Slam singles title. Italian sport says goodbye to a genuine legend: Nicola Pietrangeli, a two-time French Open champion, passed away at 92. The player made history by emerging as the pioneering Italian to win a Grand Slam singles title, earning his initial triumph at the French Open in 1959 and successfully defending the coveted trophy in 1960. With a staggering 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was universally regarded as the country's greatest ever player prior to the advent of current star and four-time major winner Jannik Sinner. "The sport in Italy is mourning an icon. Nicola Pietrangeli, the sole Italian enrolled in the World Tennis Hall of Fame, has passed away," confirmed the national federation. In addition to his pair of French Open successes, Pietrangeli also was the finalist in Paris in both 1961 and 1964. He boasts a record 164 matches played for Italy in the prestigious team competition, winning 120 of them, and spearheaded his country to its maiden title in 1976. Organisers of the Italian Open, an event where he was a double winner, said: "It is with deep sadness that we bid farewell to Nicola Pietrangeli, a veritable legend of Italian tennis..."