Italy's Tennis Great Nicola Pietrangeli Has Died at the Age of 92
Nicola Pietrangeli remains one of only three Italian men to claim a Grand Slam singles title.
Italian sport mourns a genuine icon: Nicola Pietrangeli, a double French Open champion, left us at 92.
The player made history by emerging as the pioneering Italian to secure a Grand Slam singles title, achieving his first triumph at the French Open in 1959 and successfully defending the prestigious trophy the following year.
With a remarkable 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was widely considered the nation's finest player prior to the emergence of current star and four-times major winner Jannik Sinner.
"Italian tennis is grieving an legend. Nicola Pietrangeli, the only Italian enrolled in the International Tennis Hall of Fame, has died," announced the Italian Tennis Federation.
Alongside his pair of French Open victories, Pietrangeli also reached the final in Paris in both 1961 and 1964.
He holds a remarkable 164 matches played for Italy in the Davis Cup, 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 bid farewell to Nicola Pietrangeli, a veritable legend of Italian tennis..."
