Italian Tennis Icon Nicola Pietrangeli Passes Away at the Age of 92
Nicola Pietrangeli stands as one of only three Italian men to claim a major singles title.
Italian sport mourns a true icon: Nicola Pietrangeli, a double French Open champion, passed away at ninety-two.
He carved his legacy by becoming the initial Italian to win a Grand Slam singles title, earning his maiden triumph at Roland Garros in 1959 and retaining the prestigious trophy a year later.
With a staggering 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was universally regarded as the nation's most accomplished player until the emergence of current world number two and four-times major winner Jannik Sinner.
"The sport in Italy is mourning an titan. Nicola Pietrangeli, the only Italian enrolled in the World Tennis Hall of Fame, has died," announced the Italian Tennis Federation.
Alongside 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 Davis Cup, winning 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, commented: "We are profoundly saddened that we say goodbye to Nicola Pietrangeli, a true legend of Italian tennis..."
