Italian Court Icon Nicola Pietrangeli Has Died at 92
The tennis champion is one of only three Italian men to win a Grand Slam singles title.
The world of tennis says goodbye to a genuine legend: Nicola Pietrangeli, a two-time French Open champion, left us at 92.
The player made history by becoming the initial Italian to secure a Grand Slam singles title, earning his maiden triumph at the French Open in 1959 and successfully defending the coveted trophy a year later.
With a remarkable 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was long held to be the nation's greatest ever player until the emergence of current world number two and four-time major winner Jannik Sinner.
"The sport in Italy is in mourning for an icon. Nicola Pietrangeli, the only Italian enrolled in the World Tennis Hall of Fame, has died," confirmed the Italian Tennis Federation.
Alongside his two French Open triumphs, Pietrangeli also reached the final in Paris in the years 1961 and 1964.
He holds a remarkable 164 matches played for Italy in the prestigious team competition, winning 120 of them, and led his country to its first title in 1976.
Organisers of the Italian Open, where he was a two-time winner, said: "It is with deep sadness that we say goodbye to Nicola Pietrangeli, a true legend of Italian tennis..."
