Italy's Court Legend Nicola Pietrangeli Has Died at 92
The tennis champion remains one of only three Italian men to win a Grand Slam singles title.
The world of tennis mourns a genuine icon: Nicola Pietrangeli, a two-time French Open champion, passed away at the age of 92.
The player made history by emerging as the pioneering Italian to secure a Grand Slam singles title, achieving his first triumph at Roland Garros in 1959 and retaining the coveted trophy the following year.
With a remarkable 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was long held to be the nation's most accomplished player until the emergence of current world number two and four-times major winner Jannik Sinner.
"Italian tennis is mourning an titan. Nicola Pietrangeli, the only Italian inducted in the World Tennis Hall of Fame, has passed away," stated the national federation.
Alongside his pair of French Open victories, 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 inaugural title in 1976.
Officials 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 true legend of Italian tennis..."
