Italian Court Legend Nicola Pietrangeli Passes Away at Ninety-Two
The tennis champion remains among a select trio of Italian men to secure a Grand Slam singles title.
The world of tennis 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 secure a Grand Slam singles title, securing his initial triumph at Roland Garros in 1959 and successfully defending the coveted trophy a year later.
With a remarkable 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was widely considered the country's greatest ever player until the emergence of current world number two and four-times major winner Jannik Sinner.
"Italian tennis is grieving an icon. Nicola Pietrangeli, the sole Italian inducted in the International Tennis Hall of Fame, has passed away," confirmed the national federation.
Alongside his pair of French Open victories, Pietrangeli also reached the final in Paris in both 1961 and 1964.
He boasts a remarkable 164 matches played for Italy in the prestigious team competition, winning 120 of them, and led his country to its first title in 1976.
Organisers of the Italian Open, where he was a two-time winner, stated: "We are profoundly saddened that we bid farewell to Nicola Pietrangeli, a true legend of Italian tennis..."
