Italian Tennis Great Nicola Pietrangeli Has Died at 92
Nicola Pietrangeli remains among a select trio of Italian men to win a Grand Slam singles title.
Italian sport mourns a true icon: Nicola Pietrangeli, a two-time French Open champion, has died at 92.
The player made history by becoming the initial Italian to win a Grand Slam singles title, earning his maiden triumph at Roland Garros in 1959 and successfully defending the coveted trophy a year later.
With an impressive 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was universally regarded as the country's most accomplished player until the rise of current world number two and four-times major winner Jannik Sinner.
"The sport in Italy is grieving an legend. Nicola Pietrangeli, the sole Italian enrolled in the International Tennis Hall of Fame, has passed away," confirmed the national federation.
In addition to his pair of French Open victories, Pietrangeli also reached the final in Paris in the years 1961 and 1964.
He boasts a record 164 matches played for Italy in the Davis Cup, securing victories in 120 of them, and guided his country to its first title in 1976.
Officials of the Italian Open, where he was a two-time winner, said: "It is with deep sadness that we say goodbye to Nicola Pietrangeli, a true legend of Italian tennis..."
