🔗 Share this article Italy's Court Great Nicola Pietrangeli Has Died at the Age of 92 Nicola Pietrangeli stands as among a select trio of Italian men to claim a Grand Slam singles title. Italian sport is mourning a true icon: Nicola Pietrangeli, a double French Open champion, left us at 92. The player made history by emerging as the pioneering Italian to capture a Grand Slam singles title, achieving his first triumph at the French Open in 1959 and retaining the coveted trophy a year later. With a remarkable 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was universally regarded as the nation's greatest ever player until the rise of current star and four-times major winner Jannik Sinner. "The sport in Italy is mourning an legend. Nicola Pietrangeli, the only Italian honored in the International Tennis Hall of Fame, has passed away," confirmed the Italian Tennis Federation. In addition to his pair of French Open triumphs, Pietrangeli also finished as runner-up in Paris in both 1961 and 1964. He holds a record 164 matches played for Italy in the prestigious team competition, winning 120 of them, and guided his country to its inaugural title in 1976. Officials of the Italian Open, where he was a double winner, stated: "We are profoundly saddened that we say goodbye to Nicola Pietrangeli, a true legend of Italian tennis..."
Nicola Pietrangeli stands as among a select trio of Italian men to claim a Grand Slam singles title. Italian sport is mourning a true icon: Nicola Pietrangeli, a double French Open champion, left us at 92. The player made history by emerging as the pioneering Italian to capture a Grand Slam singles title, achieving his first triumph at the French Open in 1959 and retaining the coveted trophy a year later. With a remarkable 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was universally regarded as the nation's greatest ever player until the rise of current star and four-times major winner Jannik Sinner. "The sport in Italy is mourning an legend. Nicola Pietrangeli, the only Italian honored in the International Tennis Hall of Fame, has passed away," confirmed the Italian Tennis Federation. In addition to his pair of French Open triumphs, Pietrangeli also finished as runner-up in Paris in both 1961 and 1964. He holds a record 164 matches played for Italy in the prestigious team competition, winning 120 of them, and guided his country to its inaugural title in 1976. Officials of the Italian Open, where he was a double winner, stated: "We are profoundly saddened that we say goodbye to Nicola Pietrangeli, a true legend of Italian tennis..."