Italian Court Icon Nicola Pietrangeli Has Died at Ninety-Two
The tennis champion remains among a select trio of Italian men to secure a Grand Slam singles title.
Italian sport is mourning a authentic icon: Nicola Pietrangeli, a two-time French Open champion, has died at 92.
He carved his legacy by becoming the first Italian to capture a Grand Slam singles title, earning his maiden triumph at the French Open in 1959 and successfully defending the coveted trophy the following year.
With a staggering 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was universally regarded as the country's greatest ever player prior to the emergence of current star and four-times major winner Jannik Sinner.
"Italian tennis is in mourning for an legend. Nicola Pietrangeli, the only Italian honored in the International Tennis Hall of Fame, has died," announced the national federation.
Beyond his two French Open victories, Pietrangeli also reached the final 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 guided his country to its inaugural 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 veritable legend of Italian tennis..."
