🔗 Share this article Italy's Court Great Nicola Pietrangeli Dies at the Age of 92 The tennis champion is one of only three Italian men to claim a major singles title. Italian sport is mourning a genuine icon: Nicola Pietrangeli, a two-time French Open champion, has died at ninety-two. Pietrangeli etched his name by emerging as the first Italian to secure a Grand Slam singles title, securing his initial triumph at the French Open in 1959 and retaining the prestigious trophy a year later. With a remarkable 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was long held to be the nation's greatest ever player until the advent of current world number two and four-time major winner Jannik Sinner. "Italian tennis is in mourning for an icon. Nicola Pietrangeli, the sole Italian inducted in the International Tennis Hall of Fame, has died," announced the national federation. Alongside his pair of French Open victories, Pietrangeli also finished as runner-up in Paris in both 1961 and 1964. He holds a remarkable 164 matches played for Italy in the prestigious team competition, securing victories in 120 of them, and guided his country to its inaugural title in 1976. Officials of the Italian Open, where he was a two-time winner, said: "We are profoundly saddened that we say goodbye to Nicola Pietrangeli, a true legend of Italian tennis..."
The tennis champion is one of only three Italian men to claim a major singles title. Italian sport is mourning a genuine icon: Nicola Pietrangeli, a two-time French Open champion, has died at ninety-two. Pietrangeli etched his name by emerging as the first Italian to secure a Grand Slam singles title, securing his initial triumph at the French Open in 1959 and retaining the prestigious trophy a year later. With a remarkable 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was long held to be the nation's greatest ever player until the advent of current world number two and four-time major winner Jannik Sinner. "Italian tennis is in mourning for an icon. Nicola Pietrangeli, the sole Italian inducted in the International Tennis Hall of Fame, has died," announced the national federation. Alongside his pair of French Open victories, Pietrangeli also finished as runner-up in Paris in both 1961 and 1964. He holds a remarkable 164 matches played for Italy in the prestigious team competition, securing victories in 120 of them, and guided his country to its inaugural title in 1976. Officials of the Italian Open, where he was a two-time winner, said: "We are profoundly saddened that we say goodbye to Nicola Pietrangeli, a true legend of Italian tennis..."