Italy's Court Great Nicola Pietrangeli Dies at Ninety-Two
Nicola Pietrangeli remains one of only three Italian men to secure a Grand Slam singles title.
Italian sport says goodbye to a genuine legend: Nicola Pietrangeli, a two-time French Open champion, left us at 92.
He carved his legacy by becoming the first Italian to capture a Grand Slam singles title, earning his maiden triumph at the French Open in 1959 and retaining the coveted trophy a year later.
With an impressive 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was universally regarded as the country's greatest ever player until the rise of current world number two and four-time major winner Jannik Sinner.
"Italian tennis is mourning an titan. Nicola Pietrangeli, the sole Italian inducted in the World Tennis Hall of Fame, has died," announced the Italian Tennis Federation.
Beyond his pair of French Open victories, Pietrangeli also reached the final in Paris in the years 1961 and 1964.
He set a remarkable 164 matches played for Italy in the Davis Cup, securing victories in 120 of them, and spearheaded his country to its inaugural title in 1976.
Organisers of the Italian Open, where he was a double winner, said: "We are profoundly saddened that we bid farewell to Nicola Pietrangeli, a true legend of Italian tennis..."
