Italy's Tennis Icon Nicola Pietrangeli Passes Away at Ninety-Two
The tennis champion stands as among a select trio of Italian men to secure a major singles title.
Italian sport mourns a true pioneer: Nicola Pietrangeli, a double French Open champion, passed away at ninety-two.
He carved his legacy by emerging as the first Italian to secure a Grand Slam singles title, securing his first triumph at the French Open in 1959 and retaining the coveted trophy a year later.
With a staggering 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was long held to be the country's greatest ever player until the advent of current star 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 died," confirmed the Italian Tennis Federation.
Beyond his two French Open triumphs, Pietrangeli also reached the final in Paris in the years 1961 and 1964.
He boasts a remarkable 164 matches played for Italy in the Davis Cup, winning 120 of them, and led his country to its inaugural title in 1976.
Organisers of the Italian Open, where he was a double winner, stated: "It is with deep sadness that we bid farewell to Nicola Pietrangeli, a true legend of Italian tennis..."
