Italian Tennis Great Nicola Pietrangeli Passes Away at 92
Nicola Pietrangeli is among a select trio of Italian men to secure a major singles title.
Italian sport mourns a authentic pioneer: Nicola Pietrangeli, a double French Open champion, passed away at the age of 92.
He carved his legacy by emerging as the initial Italian to win a Grand Slam singles title, achieving his first triumph at Roland Garros in 1959 and retaining 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 rise of current world number two and four-time major winner Jannik Sinner.
"The sport in Italy is mourning an legend. Nicola Pietrangeli, the sole Italian honored in the World Tennis Hall of Fame, has passed away," confirmed the Italian Tennis Federation.
Alongside his pair of French Open victories, Pietrangeli also reached the final 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 first title in 1976.
Organisers of the Italian Open, an event where he was a double winner, stated: "It is with deep sadness that we bid farewell to Nicola Pietrangeli, a veritable legend of Italian tennis..."
