Italian Court Great Nicola Pietrangeli Has Died at Ninety-Two
Nicola Pietrangeli remains one of only three Italian men to win a Grand Slam singles title.
Italian sport mourns a genuine legend: Nicola Pietrangeli, a double French Open champion, left us at 92.
The player made history by emerging as the initial Italian to win 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 widely considered the nation's greatest ever player until the emergence of current star and four-times major winner Jannik Sinner.
"The sport in Italy is in mourning for an titan. Nicola Pietrangeli, the only Italian honored in the World Tennis Hall of Fame, has died," confirmed the national federation.
In addition to his pair of French Open triumphs, 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, winning 120 of them, and spearheaded 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 veritable legend of Italian tennis..."
