Italy's Court Great Nicola Pietrangeli Passes Away at 92
The tennis champion stands as among a select trio of Italian men to claim a Grand Slam singles title.
Italian sport says goodbye to a true icon: Nicola Pietrangeli, a double French Open champion, left us at the age of 92.
The player made history by becoming the pioneering Italian to capture a Grand Slam singles title, achieving his maiden triumph at the French Open in 1959 and successfully defending the coveted trophy the following year.
With a remarkable 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was universally regarded as the nation's greatest ever player until the advent of current star and four-time major winner Jannik Sinner.
"Italian tennis is mourning an legend. Nicola Pietrangeli, the only Italian inducted in the World Tennis Hall of Fame, has died," stated the national federation.
Beyond his two French Open triumphs, Pietrangeli also was the finalist in Paris in the years 1961 and 1964.
He boasts a record 164 matches played for Italy in the prestigious team competition, securing victories in 120 of them, and spearheaded his country to its maiden title in 1976.
Officials of the Italian Open, an event where he was a two-time winner, said: "It is with deep sadness that we bid farewell to Nicola Pietrangeli, a true legend of Italian tennis..."
