Italy's Court Legend Nicola Pietrangeli Passes Away at the Age of 92
Nicola Pietrangeli is among a select trio of Italian men to secure a Grand Slam singles title.
Italian sport mourns a true icon: Nicola Pietrangeli, a double French Open champion, has died at 92.
The player made history by becoming the pioneering Italian to capture a Grand Slam singles title, achieving his maiden triumph at the French Open in 1959 and retaining the coveted trophy a year later.
With an impressive 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was widely considered the country's greatest ever player until the rise of current star and four-times major winner Jannik Sinner.
"Italian tennis is mourning an icon. Nicola Pietrangeli, the sole Italian honored in the World Tennis Hall of Fame, has passed away," stated the national federation.
In addition to his two French Open triumphs, Pietrangeli also reached the final in Paris in the years 1961 and 1964.
He set a record 164 matches played for Italy in the Davis Cup, winning 120 of them, and guided his country to its first title in 1976.
Organisers of the Italian Open, where he was a double winner, stated: "We are profoundly saddened that we bid farewell to Nicola Pietrangeli, a veritable legend of Italian tennis..."
