Italy's Court Legend Nicola Pietrangeli Dies at 92
Nicola Pietrangeli remains one of only three Italian men to claim a Grand Slam singles title.
The world of tennis is mourning a authentic icon: Nicola Pietrangeli, a double French Open champion, left us at ninety-two.
The player made history by emerging as the first Italian to capture a Grand Slam singles title, achieving his maiden triumph at Roland Garros in 1959 and successfully defending the coveted trophy a year later.
With a remarkable 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was long held to be the nation's greatest ever player until the emergence of current world number two and four-times major winner Jannik Sinner.
"Italian tennis is mourning an titan. Nicola Pietrangeli, the sole Italian enrolled in the International Tennis Hall of Fame, has died," stated the national federation.
Alongside his two French Open triumphs, Pietrangeli also was the finalist 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.
Officials of the Italian Open, an event where he was a double winner, said: "It is with deep sadness that we say goodbye to Nicola Pietrangeli, a veritable legend of Italian tennis..."
