Italy's Court Legend Nicola Pietrangeli Passes Away at the Age of 92
The tennis champion stands as one of only three Italian men to win a major singles title.
Italian sport is mourning a authentic icon: Nicola Pietrangeli, a double French Open champion, passed away at 92.
The player made history by becoming the initial Italian to win a Grand Slam singles title, achieving his first triumph at the French Open in 1959 and successfully defending the coveted trophy a year later.
With an impressive 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was long held to be the nation's greatest ever player prior to the rise of current world number two and four-time major winner Jannik Sinner.
"The sport in Italy is in mourning for an icon. Nicola Pietrangeli, the only Italian inducted in the International Tennis Hall of Fame, has passed away," confirmed the Italian Tennis Federation.
Beyond his two French Open triumphs, Pietrangeli also was the finalist in Paris in the years 1961 and 1964.
He holds a record 164 matches played for Italy in the prestigious team competition, winning 120 of them, and spearheaded his country to its inaugural title in 1976.
Organisers of the Italian Open, an event where he was a double winner, commented: "We are profoundly saddened that we bid farewell to Nicola Pietrangeli, a true legend of Italian tennis..."
