Italian Court Great Nicola Pietrangeli Has Died at Ninety-Two
The tennis champion stands as one of only three Italian men to secure a major singles title.
The world of tennis mourns a genuine legend: Nicola Pietrangeli, a two-time French Open champion, passed away at 92.
He carved his legacy by becoming the initial Italian to capture a Grand Slam singles title, achieving his first triumph at Roland Garros in 1959 and retaining the coveted trophy a year later.
With an impressive 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was universally regarded as the country's greatest ever player until the emergence of current world number two and four-time major winner Jannik Sinner.
"The sport in Italy is grieving an icon. Nicola Pietrangeli, the only Italian enrolled in the International Tennis Hall of Fame, has died," announced the Italian Tennis Federation.
Alongside his two French Open successes, Pietrangeli also finished as runner-up in Paris in both 1961 and 1964.
He boasts a record 164 matches played for Italy in the prestigious team competition, securing victories in 120 of them, and guided his country to its inaugural title in 1976.
Organisers of the Italian Open, an event where he was a double winner, stated: "We are profoundly saddened that we say goodbye to Nicola Pietrangeli, a true legend of Italian tennis..."
