🔗 Share this article Azzurri Court Icon Nicola Pietrangeli Has Died at Ninety-Two Nicola Pietrangeli remains among a select trio of Italian men to secure a Grand Slam singles title. The world of tennis says goodbye to a authentic legend: Nicola Pietrangeli, a double French Open champion, left us at 92. The player made history by emerging as the initial Italian to win a Grand Slam singles title, earning his initial triumph at Roland Garros in 1959 and retaining the coveted trophy a year later. With an impressive 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was widely considered the nation's greatest ever player prior to the advent of current world number two and four-time major winner Jannik Sinner. "Italian tennis is mourning an icon. Nicola Pietrangeli, the only Italian honored in the World Tennis Hall of Fame, has passed away," announced the Italian Tennis 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 Davis Cup, securing victories in 120 of them, and guided his country to its first title in 1976. Officials of the Italian Open, where he was a two-time winner, commented: "We are profoundly saddened that we say goodbye to Nicola Pietrangeli, a veritable legend of Italian tennis..."
Nicola Pietrangeli remains among a select trio of Italian men to secure a Grand Slam singles title. The world of tennis says goodbye to a authentic legend: Nicola Pietrangeli, a double French Open champion, left us at 92. The player made history by emerging as the initial Italian to win a Grand Slam singles title, earning his initial triumph at Roland Garros in 1959 and retaining the coveted trophy a year later. With an impressive 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was widely considered the nation's greatest ever player prior to the advent of current world number two and four-time major winner Jannik Sinner. "Italian tennis is mourning an icon. Nicola Pietrangeli, the only Italian honored in the World Tennis Hall of Fame, has passed away," announced the Italian Tennis 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 Davis Cup, securing victories in 120 of them, and guided his country to its first title in 1976. Officials of the Italian Open, where he was a two-time winner, commented: "We are profoundly saddened that we say goodbye to Nicola Pietrangeli, a veritable legend of Italian tennis..."