Azzurri Tennis Great Nicola Pietrangeli Has Died at Ninety-Two

Italian sport says goodbye to a genuine icon: Nicola Pietrangeli, a double French Open champion, passed away at 92.

Pietrangeli etched his name by becoming the pioneering Italian to win a Grand Slam singles title, earning his maiden triumph at Roland Garros in 1959 and successfully defending the prestigious trophy the following year.

With a staggering 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was long held to be the nation's greatest ever player prior to the emergence of current star and four-time major winner Jannik Sinner.

"Italian tennis is grieving an titan. Nicola Pietrangeli, the sole Italian enrolled in the International Tennis Hall of Fame, has died," announced the national federation.

Alongside his pair of French Open victories, Pietrangeli also was the finalist in Paris in the years 1961 and 1964.

He boasts a remarkable 164 matches played for Italy in the prestigious team competition, winning 120 of them, and guided his country to its maiden title in 1976.

Organisers of the Italian Open, where he was a two-time winner, said: "It is with deep sadness that we say goodbye to Nicola Pietrangeli, a true legend of Italian tennis..."