🔗 Share this article Azzurri Court Legend Nicola Pietrangeli Passes Away at 92 Nicola Pietrangeli stands as among a select trio of 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, left us at the age of 92. Pietrangeli etched his name by emerging as the pioneering Italian to secure a Grand Slam singles title, earning his initial triumph at Roland Garros in 1959 and successfully defending the coveted trophy a year later. With a staggering 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was universally regarded as the nation's greatest ever player prior to the emergence of current star and four-times major winner Jannik Sinner. "Italian tennis is grieving an titan. Nicola Pietrangeli, the sole Italian inducted in the World Tennis Hall of Fame, has died," announced the Italian Tennis Federation. Alongside his two French Open successes, Pietrangeli also was the finalist in Paris in the years 1961 and 1964. He holds a record 164 matches played for Italy in the prestigious team competition, securing victories in 120 of them, and spearheaded his country to its inaugural title in 1976. Organisers of the Italian Open, an event where he was a two-time winner, said: "It is with deep sadness that we bid farewell to Nicola Pietrangeli, a true legend of Italian tennis..."
Nicola Pietrangeli stands as among a select trio of 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, left us at the age of 92. Pietrangeli etched his name by emerging as the pioneering Italian to secure a Grand Slam singles title, earning his initial triumph at Roland Garros in 1959 and successfully defending the coveted trophy a year later. With a staggering 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was universally regarded as the nation's greatest ever player prior to the emergence of current star and four-times major winner Jannik Sinner. "Italian tennis is grieving an titan. Nicola Pietrangeli, the sole Italian inducted in the World Tennis Hall of Fame, has died," announced the Italian Tennis Federation. Alongside his two French Open successes, Pietrangeli also was the finalist in Paris in the years 1961 and 1964. He holds a record 164 matches played for Italy in the prestigious team competition, securing victories in 120 of them, and spearheaded his country to its inaugural title in 1976. Organisers of the Italian Open, an event where he was a two-time winner, said: "It is with deep sadness that we bid farewell to Nicola Pietrangeli, a true legend of Italian tennis..."