Italy's Tennis Legend Nicola Pietrangeli Has Died at the Age of 92
The tennis champion remains among a select trio of Italian men to secure a major singles title.
Italian sport is mourning a authentic icon: Nicola Pietrangeli, a double French Open champion, left us at the age of 92.
He carved his legacy by emerging as the pioneering Italian to win a Grand Slam singles title, securing his maiden triumph at the French Open in 1959 and retaining the coveted trophy in 1960.
With a remarkable 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was widely considered the country's most accomplished player prior to the emergence of current world number two and four-time major winner Jannik Sinner.
"Italian tennis is in mourning for an titan. Nicola Pietrangeli, the only Italian enrolled in the World Tennis Hall of Fame, has died," stated the national federation.
Beyond his pair of French Open successes, Pietrangeli also reached the final in Paris in the years 1961 and 1964.
He set a remarkable 164 matches played for Italy in the Davis Cup, winning 120 of them, and spearheaded his country to its first title in 1976.
Organisers of the Italian Open, where he was a double winner, stated: "It is with deep sadness that we say goodbye to Nicola Pietrangeli, a true legend of Italian tennis..."
