Italy's Tennis Icon Nicola Pietrangeli Passes Away at the Age of 92
Nicola Pietrangeli is among a select trio of Italian men to secure a Grand Slam singles title.
The world of tennis is mourning a true icon: Nicola Pietrangeli, a double French Open champion, passed away at the age of 92.
Pietrangeli etched his name by emerging as the initial Italian to secure a Grand Slam singles title, achieving his initial triumph at the French Open in 1959 and successfully defending the coveted trophy in 1960.
With a remarkable 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was widely considered the nation's greatest ever player prior to the emergence of current world number two and four-time major winner Jannik Sinner.
"Italian tennis is mourning an legend. Nicola Pietrangeli, the only Italian enrolled in the World Tennis Hall of Fame, has passed away," stated the Italian Tennis Federation.
Alongside his pair of French Open successes, Pietrangeli also finished as runner-up in Paris in both 1961 and 1964.
He boasts a remarkable 164 matches played for Italy in the prestigious team competition, securing victories in 120 of them, and guided his country to its first title in 1976.
Organisers of the Italian Open, where he was a double winner, commented: "We are profoundly saddened that we say goodbye to Nicola Pietrangeli, a true legend of Italian tennis..."
