Italian Tennis Legend Nicola Pietrangeli Dies at Ninety-Two
The tennis champion remains one of only three Italian men to secure a major singles title.
Italian sport says goodbye to a true legend: Nicola Pietrangeli, a double French Open champion, left us at ninety-two.
The player made history by becoming the initial Italian to capture a Grand Slam singles title, achieving his maiden triumph at Roland Garros in 1959 and retaining the coveted trophy in 1960.
With a staggering 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was universally regarded as the country's greatest ever player prior to the emergence of current star and four-times major winner Jannik Sinner.
"The sport in Italy is mourning an icon. Nicola Pietrangeli, the sole Italian enrolled in the World Tennis Hall of Fame, has died," confirmed the national federation.
Alongside his two French Open triumphs, Pietrangeli also reached the final in Paris in the years 1961 and 1964.
He set 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.
Organisers of the Italian Open, an event where he was a double winner, commented: "We are profoundly saddened that we say goodbye to Nicola Pietrangeli, a true legend of Italian tennis..."
