Italian Court Icon Nicola Pietrangeli Passes Away at Ninety-Two
Nicola Pietrangeli stands as one of only three Italian men to claim a major singles title.
Italian sport is mourning a true legend: Nicola Pietrangeli, a double French Open champion, left us at 92.
Pietrangeli etched his name by becoming the initial Italian to win a Grand Slam singles title, earning his initial triumph at the French Open in 1959 and successfully defending the coveted trophy the following year.
With an impressive 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was long held to be the country's greatest ever player prior to the emergence of current world number two and four-times major winner Jannik Sinner.
"Italian tennis is grieving an titan. Nicola Pietrangeli, the sole Italian inducted in the International Tennis Hall of Fame, has died," stated the Italian Tennis Federation.
In addition to his two French Open successes, Pietrangeli also was the finalist in Paris in the years 1961 and 1964.
He holds a remarkable 164 matches played for Italy in the Davis Cup, securing victories in 120 of them, and spearheaded his country to its first title in 1976.
Officials of the Italian Open, where he was a double winner, said: "We are profoundly saddened that we say goodbye to Nicola Pietrangeli, a veritable legend of Italian tennis..."
