🔗 Share this article Italy's Tennis Icon Nicola Pietrangeli Passes Away at the Age of 92 Nicola Pietrangeli stands as one of only three Italian men to win a major singles title. The world of tennis is mourning a true pioneer: Nicola Pietrangeli, a double French Open champion, passed away at the age of 92. He carved his legacy by emerging as the first Italian to capture a Grand Slam singles title, securing his maiden triumph at Roland Garros in 1959 and retaining the coveted trophy the following year. With a staggering 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was long held to be the country's most accomplished player until the emergence of current world number two and four-times major winner Jannik Sinner. "The sport in Italy is in mourning for an titan. Nicola Pietrangeli, the sole Italian enrolled in the International Tennis Hall of Fame, has passed away," confirmed the national federation. Alongside his pair of French Open victories, Pietrangeli also reached the final in Paris in the years 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 inaugural title in 1976. Organisers of the Italian Open, an event where he was a double winner, said: "We are profoundly saddened that we bid farewell to Nicola Pietrangeli, a veritable legend of Italian tennis..."
Nicola Pietrangeli stands as one of only three Italian men to win a major singles title. The world of tennis is mourning a true pioneer: Nicola Pietrangeli, a double French Open champion, passed away at the age of 92. He carved his legacy by emerging as the first Italian to capture a Grand Slam singles title, securing his maiden triumph at Roland Garros in 1959 and retaining the coveted trophy the following year. With a staggering 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was long held to be the country's most accomplished player until the emergence of current world number two and four-times major winner Jannik Sinner. "The sport in Italy is in mourning for an titan. Nicola Pietrangeli, the sole Italian enrolled in the International Tennis Hall of Fame, has passed away," confirmed the national federation. Alongside his pair of French Open victories, Pietrangeli also reached the final in Paris in the years 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 inaugural title in 1976. Organisers of the Italian Open, an event where he was a double winner, said: "We are profoundly saddened that we bid farewell to Nicola Pietrangeli, a veritable legend of Italian tennis..."