Italian Tennis Great Nicola Pietrangeli Has Died at the Age of 92
Nicola Pietrangeli stands as among a select trio of Italian men to win a Grand Slam singles title.
Italian sport is mourning a true icon: Nicola Pietrangeli, a double French Open champion, left us at ninety-two.
Pietrangeli etched his name by becoming the initial Italian to capture a Grand Slam singles title, earning his first triumph at the French Open in 1959 and retaining the coveted trophy the following year.
With a remarkable 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.
"Italian tennis is mourning an titan. Nicola Pietrangeli, the only Italian honored in the International Tennis Hall of Fame, has died," announced the Italian Tennis Federation.
Alongside his pair of French Open successes, Pietrangeli also was the finalist in Paris in both 1961 and 1964.
He set a remarkable 164 matches played for Italy in the prestigious team competition, winning 120 of them, and spearheaded his country to its maiden title in 1976.
Organisers of the Italian Open, where he was a two-time winner, commented: "It is with deep sadness that we say goodbye to Nicola Pietrangeli, a true legend of Italian tennis..."
