🔗 Share this article Italy's Court Icon Nicola Pietrangeli Dies at Ninety-Two Nicola Pietrangeli remains among a select trio of Italian men to secure a major singles title. Italian sport says goodbye to a authentic icon: Nicola Pietrangeli, a two-time French Open champion, passed away at ninety-two. Pietrangeli etched his name by emerging as the pioneering Italian to secure a Grand Slam singles title, securing his maiden triumph at the French Open in 1959 and retaining the prestigious trophy in 1960. With a remarkable 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was long held to be the country's greatest ever player prior to the rise 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 died," confirmed the Italian Tennis Federation. Beyond his pair of French Open successes, Pietrangeli also was the finalist in Paris in both 1961 and 1964. He set a remarkable 164 matches played for Italy in the Davis Cup, winning 120 of them, and guided his country to its maiden title in 1976. Officials of the Italian Open, an event where he was a double winner, stated: "We are profoundly saddened that we bid farewell to Nicola Pietrangeli, a veritable legend of Italian tennis..."
Nicola Pietrangeli remains among a select trio of Italian men to secure a major singles title. Italian sport says goodbye to a authentic icon: Nicola Pietrangeli, a two-time French Open champion, passed away at ninety-two. Pietrangeli etched his name by emerging as the pioneering Italian to secure a Grand Slam singles title, securing his maiden triumph at the French Open in 1959 and retaining the prestigious trophy in 1960. With a remarkable 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was long held to be the country's greatest ever player prior to the rise 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 died," confirmed the Italian Tennis Federation. Beyond his pair of French Open successes, Pietrangeli also was the finalist in Paris in both 1961 and 1964. He set a remarkable 164 matches played for Italy in the Davis Cup, winning 120 of them, and guided his country to its maiden title in 1976. Officials of the Italian Open, an event where he was a double winner, stated: "We are profoundly saddened that we bid farewell to Nicola Pietrangeli, a veritable legend of Italian tennis..."