Italian Court Icon Nicola Pietrangeli Has Died at Ninety-Two
Nicola Pietrangeli is among a select trio of Italian men to win a major singles title.
Italian sport says goodbye to a true pioneer: Nicola Pietrangeli, a double French Open champion, left us at 92.
The player made history by becoming the pioneering Italian to capture 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 a remarkable 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was long held to be the country's greatest ever player prior to the emergence of current star and four-times major winner Jannik Sinner.
"Italian tennis is grieving an icon. Nicola Pietrangeli, the only Italian inducted in the International Tennis Hall of Fame, has passed away," announced the Italian Tennis Federation.
Alongside his two French Open successes, Pietrangeli also was the finalist in Paris in both 1961 and 1964.
He set a remarkable 164 matches played for Italy in the Davis Cup, securing victories in 120 of them, and led his country to its maiden title in 1976.
Organisers of the Italian Open, where he was a two-time winner, stated: "We are profoundly saddened that we bid farewell to Nicola Pietrangeli, a true legend of Italian tennis..."
