Italian Tennis Icon Nicola Pietrangeli Dies at Ninety-Two
The tennis champion remains one of only three Italian men to secure a major singles title.
Italian sport is mourning a authentic icon: Nicola Pietrangeli, a double French Open champion, has died at ninety-two.
The player made history by emerging as the pioneering Italian to win a Grand Slam singles title, securing his first triumph at Roland Garros in 1959 and successfully defending the coveted trophy the following year.
With a staggering 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was widely considered the nation's finest player prior to the advent 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 sole Italian inducted in the International Tennis Hall of Fame, has died," confirmed the Italian Tennis Federation.
Beyond his pair of French Open victories, Pietrangeli also finished as runner-up in Paris in both 1961 and 1964.
He holds a remarkable 164 matches played for Italy in the Davis Cup, securing victories in 120 of them, and guided his country to its maiden title in 1976.
Organisers of the Italian Open, where he was a two-time winner, said: "It is with deep sadness that we bid farewell to Nicola Pietrangeli, a true legend of Italian tennis..."
