đź”— Share this article Azzurri Court Legend Nicola Pietrangeli Has Died at the Age of 92 The tennis champion remains among a select trio of Italian men to win a major singles title. Italian sport says goodbye to a genuine icon: Nicola Pietrangeli, a two-time French Open champion, left us at the age of 92. Pietrangeli etched his name by emerging as the first Italian to capture a Grand Slam singles title, achieving his first triumph at the French Open in 1959 and successfully defending the coveted trophy in 1960. With a staggering 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was long held to be the nation's greatest ever player until the rise of current star and four-times major winner Jannik Sinner. "Italian tennis is in mourning for an icon. Nicola Pietrangeli, the only Italian enrolled in the World Tennis Hall of Fame, has died," confirmed the national federation. Alongside his pair of French Open victories, Pietrangeli also was the finalist in Paris in the years 1961 and 1964. He holds a remarkable 164 matches played for Italy in the prestigious team competition, winning 120 of them, and led 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 say goodbye to Nicola Pietrangeli, a true legend of Italian tennis..."
The tennis champion remains among a select trio of Italian men to win a major singles title. Italian sport says goodbye to a genuine icon: Nicola Pietrangeli, a two-time French Open champion, left us at the age of 92. Pietrangeli etched his name by emerging as the first Italian to capture a Grand Slam singles title, achieving his first triumph at the French Open in 1959 and successfully defending the coveted trophy in 1960. With a staggering 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was long held to be the nation's greatest ever player until the rise of current star and four-times major winner Jannik Sinner. "Italian tennis is in mourning for an icon. Nicola Pietrangeli, the only Italian enrolled in the World Tennis Hall of Fame, has died," confirmed the national federation. Alongside his pair of French Open victories, Pietrangeli also was the finalist in Paris in the years 1961 and 1964. He holds a remarkable 164 matches played for Italy in the prestigious team competition, winning 120 of them, and led 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 say goodbye to Nicola Pietrangeli, a true legend of Italian tennis..."