Italy's Court Great Nicola Pietrangeli Dies at Ninety-Two
The tennis champion stands as among a select trio of Italian men to claim a major singles title.
The world of tennis says goodbye to a true icon: Nicola Pietrangeli, a two-time French Open champion, left us at the age of 92.
He carved his legacy by becoming the pioneering Italian to win a Grand Slam singles title, achieving his first triumph at Roland Garros in 1959 and successfully defending the coveted trophy a year later.
With a staggering 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was widely considered the nation's greatest ever player prior to the rise of current world number two and four-times major winner Jannik Sinner.
"The sport in Italy is grieving an legend. Nicola Pietrangeli, the sole Italian inducted in the International Tennis Hall of Fame, has passed away," stated the Italian Tennis Federation.
Alongside his two French Open successes, Pietrangeli also was the finalist 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 spearheaded his country to its inaugural title in 1976.
Organisers of the Italian Open, an event where he was a two-time winner, commented: "We are profoundly saddened that we bid farewell to Nicola Pietrangeli, a true legend of Italian tennis..."
