Nicola Pietrangeli
Nicola "Nicky" Pietrangeli (Italian pronunciation: [niˈkɔːla pjeˈtrandʒeli]; born 11 September 1933) is a former Italian tennis player. He won two singles titles at the French Championships and is considered by many to be Italy's greatest tennis champion.
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| Country (sports) |  | |||||||||||||
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| Residence | Rome, Italy | |||||||||||||
| Born | 11 September 1933 Tunis, Tunisia | |||||||||||||
| Height | 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in) | |||||||||||||
| Turned pro | 1968 (amateur tour from 1953) | |||||||||||||
| Retired | 1973 | |||||||||||||
| Plays | Right-handed (one-handed backhand) | |||||||||||||
| Int. Tennis HoF | 1986 (member page) | |||||||||||||
| Singles | ||||||||||||||
| Career record | 687-278 (71.4%) [1] | |||||||||||||
| Career titles | 43 [2] | |||||||||||||
| Highest ranking | No. 3 (1959, Lance Tingay)[3] | |||||||||||||
| Grand Slam Singles results | ||||||||||||||
| Australian Open | QF (1957) | |||||||||||||
| French Open | W (1959, 1960) | |||||||||||||
| Wimbledon | SF (1960) | |||||||||||||
| US Open | 3R (1955, 1965) | |||||||||||||
| Doubles | ||||||||||||||
| Career record | 21–20 | |||||||||||||
| Grand Slam Doubles results | ||||||||||||||
| French Open | W (1959) | |||||||||||||
| Wimbledon | F (1956) | |||||||||||||
| Grand Slam Mixed Doubles results | ||||||||||||||
| French Open | W (1958) | |||||||||||||
| Wimbledon | 3R (1955, 1959) | |||||||||||||
| Team competitions | ||||||||||||||
| Davis Cup | F (1960Ch, 1961Ch) | |||||||||||||
Medal record
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Biography
Born 11 September 1933, in Tunis, Tunisia, Pietrangeli appeared in four men's singles finals at Roland Garros – winning the title in 1959 and 1960, and finishing runner-up in 1961 and 1964. He also won the Roland Garros men's doubles title in 1959 (together with Orlando Sirola), and the mixed doubles in 1958. At Wimbledon, Pietrangeli was a single semifinalist in 1960, when he lost to Rod Laver in 5 sets. He won the Italian Open in 1957 and 1961 and was ranked World No. 3 by Lance Tingay of The Daily Telegraph in 1959 and 1960 and also by Ned Potter in 1961.[3][4]
Pietrangeli represented Italy in the Davis Cup between 1954 and 1972. He played in a record 164 Davis Cup rubbers, winning a record 120. He was a player on the Italian teams which reached the Davis Cup final in 1960 and 1961. Both finals were played on grass courts in Australia, and the Italians were not able to overcome the strong Australian team which included Laver, Roy Emerson and Neale Fraser.
After retiring as a player, Pietrangeli became Italy's Davis Cup team captain and guided them to winning their first-ever Davis Cup in 1976.
Pietrangeli was inducted in the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1986. On his 73rd birthday, the old tennis stadium in Foro Italico of Rome was named in his honour; he is among the very few tennis players to have received such an honour while still living (others include Laver and Margaret Court).
Grand Slam finals
Singles (2 titles, 2 runners-up)
| Result | Year | Championship | Surface | Opponent | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Win | 1959 | French Championships | Clay | .svg.png){kind=small} | 3–6, 6–3, 6–4, 6–1 |
| Win | 1960 | French Championships | Clay |  | 3–6, 6–3, 6–4, 4–6, 6–3 |
| Loss | 1961 | French Championships | Clay | .svg.png){kind=small} | 6–4, 1–6, 6–3, 0–6, 2–6 |
| Loss | 1964 | French Championships | Clay | | 3–6, 1–6, 6–4, 5–7 |
Doubles (1 title, 2 runners-up)
| Result | Year | Championship | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loss | 1955 | French Championships | Clay | |  | 1–6, 6–4, 2–6, 4–6 |
| Loss | 1956 | Wimbledon Championships | Grass | | .svg.png){kind=small} | 5–7, 2–6, 1–6 |
| Win | 1959 | French Championships | Clay | | | 6–3, 6–2, 14–12 |
Mixed doubles (1 title)
| Result | Year | Championship | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Win | 1958 | French Championships | Clay |  | | 8–6, 6–2 |
Performance timeline
| W | F | SF | QF | #R | RR | Q# | A | NH |
| Tournament | Amateur career | Open career | Titles / Played | Career W–L | Career Win% | ||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| '54 | '55 | '56 | '57 | '58 | '59 | '60 | '61 | '62 | '63 | '64 | '65 | '66 | '67 | '68 | '69 | '70 | '71 | '72 | '73 | ||||
| Grand Slam tournaments | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Australian Open | A | A | A | QF | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | 0 / 1 | 2–1 | 67% |
| French Open | 3R | 3R | QF | 1R | 4R | W | W | F | QF | QF | F | 4R | 3R | 3R | 1R | 1R | 3R | 3R | 3R | 1R | 2 / 20 | 58–18 | 79% |
| Wimbledon | 2R | QF | 4R | 1R | 4R | 1R | SF | 3R | 3R | 3R | 2R | 4R | 1R | 2R | 1R | 1R | 1R | A | 3R | 1R | 0 / 19 | 30–18 | 63% |
| US Open | A | 3R | A | A | A | A | A | A | 1R | A | 2R | 3R | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | 0 / 4 | 5–3 | 63% |
| Career | 2 / 44 | 95–40 | 70% | ||||||||||||||||||||
See also
- Legends of Italian sport - Walk of Fame
References
- Garcia, Gabriel. "Nicola Pietrangeli: Career match record". thetennisbase.com. Madrid: Tennismem SL. Retrieved 7 November 2017.
- Garcia, Gabriel. "Nicola Pietrangeli: Career match record". thetennisbase.com. Madrid: Tennismem SL. Retrieved 7 November 2017.
- United States Lawn Tennis Association (1972). Official Encyclopedia of Tennis (First Edition), p. 427.
- "Hard Won Major U.S. Title", The Milwaukee Sentinel, 25 December 1961.
External links
- Nicola Pietrangeli at the International Tennis Hall of Fame
- Nicola Pietrangeli at the Davis Cup
- Nicola Pietrangeli at the International Tennis Federation
- Nicola Pietrangeli at the Association of Tennis Professionals
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