{"id":319021,"date":"2025-12-01T19:46:09","date_gmt":"2025-12-01T19:46:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/319021\/"},"modified":"2025-12-01T19:46:09","modified_gmt":"2025-12-01T19:46:09","slug":"novak-djokovic-rafael-nadal-and-tennis-world-pay-tribute-as-italian-legend-nicola-pietrangeli-dies-at-92","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/319021\/","title":{"rendered":"Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Tennis World Pay Tribute as Italian Legend Nicola Pietrangeli Dies at 92"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal led an emotional wave of tributes on Monday as the tennis world honored Nicola Pietrangeli, the Italian icon and two-time French Open champion who died at 92, prompting players past and present to reflect on the legacy he leaves behind.<\/p>\n<p>Emotional Tributes Pour In from Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, and Fellow Stars<\/p>\n<p>22-time Grand Slam champion Nadal was among the first to share a personal reflection, posting a photo of Pietrangeli handing him the 2010 French Open trophy. He <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/RafaelNadal\/status\/1995416897836490887?t=igEgDCkXOYIBX3TxvYATyA&amp;s=19\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">wrote<\/a>, \u201cI have just learned of the sad news of the departure of a great of Italian and world tennis. My deepest condolences to his entire family, his son Filippo, and the entire Italian tennis family. DEP Nicola.\u201d<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"it\">Ho appena saputo della triste notizia della partenza di un grande del tennis italiano e mondiale.<\/p>\n<p>Le mie pi\u00f9 sentite condoglianze a tutta la sua famiglia, il suo figlio Filippo, e tutta la famiglia del tennis italiano. DEP Nicola <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/rs1ql2vAU6\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">pic.twitter.com\/rs1ql2vAU6<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Rafa Nadal (@RafaelNadal) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/RafaelNadal\/status\/1995416897836490887?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow noreferrer\">December 1, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<p>24-time Grand Slam champion Djokovic honored the moment by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/djokernole\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow noreferrer\">resharing<\/a> the news on his Instagram story, adding a folded hands emoji.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1232441\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/12-01-25-1-154x300.jpg\" alt=\"Novak Djokovic on Instagram\" width=\"154\" height=\"300\"  \/>Novak Djokovic on Instagram<\/p>\n<p>Italian players Lorenzo Musetti, Jasmine Paolini, and Matteo Arnaldi also shared the news on their Instagram stories, accompanied by solemn emojis.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1232444\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/12-01-25-165x300.png\" alt=\"Matteo Arnaldi on Instagram\" width=\"165\" height=\"300\"  \/>Matteo Arnaldi on Instagram<br \/>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1232445\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/12-01-25-2-138x300.jpg\" alt=\"Jasmine Paolini on Instagram\" width=\"138\" height=\"300\"  \/>Jasmine Paolini on Instagram<br \/>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1232446\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/12-01-25-3-138x300.jpg\" alt=\"Lorenzo Musetti on Instagram\" width=\"138\" height=\"300\"  \/>Lorenzo Musetti on Instagram<\/p>\n<p>Tributes extended beyond Italy as well. Tennis legend Yannick Noah <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DRtvRUnCGGQ\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow noreferrer\">commented<\/a> on an Instagram post, writing, \u201cA friend, a legend is gone \ud83d\ude4f\ud83c\udffd\ud83d\ude4f\ud83c\udffd\ud83d\ude4f\ud83c\udffd\ud83d\ude4f\ud83c\udffd\ud83d\ude4f\ud83c\udffd\ud83d\ude4f\ud83c\udffd \ud83d\ude30\ud83d\ude30\ud83d\ude30\ud83d\ude30,\u201d while Sloane Stephens added red heart emojis.<\/p>\n<p>Veteran Italian player Fabio Fognini shared a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DRtzYuniHPi\/?igsh=eGE4bWE2MGJoeDhk\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow noreferrer\">personal snapshot<\/a> with Pietrangeli, captioning it, \u201cDear Nick, a huge piece of our history is leaving. This photo in Montecarlo is worth everything to me: your example, your irony, your light. You taught everyone what winning really means. Safe travels, legend.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Former Italian star Flavia Pennetta added her own message beneath an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/DRt6i3jCMTW\/?igsh=MXJpNWp5enZpdGs4cQ%3D%3D\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow noreferrer\">old photograph<\/a>, writing, \u201cI like to remember you this way, together. Thank you for everything you did for our sport, we will never forget you. Rest in peace, Nicola \u2665\ufe0f.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>MORE: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.profootballnetwork.com\/tennis\/novak-djokovic-makes-his-position-clear-on-offseason-priorities-as-he-gears-up-to-go-toe-to-toe-with-carlos-alcaraz-jannik-sinner-in-2026\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Novak Djokovic Makes His Position Clear on Offseason Priorities As He Gears Up To Go Toe-to-Toe With Carlos Alcaraz, Jannik Sinner in 2026<\/a><\/p>\n<p>What Made Nicola Pietrangeli One of Italy\u2019s Most Accomplished Tennis Champions?<\/p>\n<p>Pietrangeli\u2019s passing resonates far beyond his impressive list of achievements. Regarded as Italy\u2019s greatest pre-Open Era player, he became the first Italian man to capture a Grand Slam singles trophy when he won Roland Garros in 1959 and repeated the feat in 1960.<\/p>\n<p>His accomplishments extended across multiple disciplines, including the 1958 mixed doubles title in Paris, the 1959 men\u2019s doubles championship with Orlando Sirola and more than 50 total titles in singles and doubles combined.<\/p>\n<p>His contributions to the Davis Cup remain historic. Pietrangeli appeared in 164 matches and collected 120 wins, a record that still stands. After his retirement, he captained Italy to its first Davis Cup crown in 1976 and continued serving as a respected ambassador for the sport. His 1986 induction into the International Tennis Hall of Fame affirmed his influence on generations of players.<\/p>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><script async src=\"\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal led an emotional wave of tributes on Monday as the tennis world honored&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":319022,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[442],"tags":[49,48,82,593],"class_list":["post-319021","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-tennis","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-sports","tag-tennis"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/319021","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=319021"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/319021\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/319022"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=319021"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=319021"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=319021"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}