Italy's Tennis Legend Nicola Pietrangeli Passes Away at 92
Nicola Pietrangeli stands as one of only three Italian men to secure a Grand Slam singles title.
Italian sport says goodbye to a true icon: Nicola Pietrangeli, a two-time French Open champion, left us at 92.
Pietrangeli etched his name by emerging as the initial Italian to secure a Grand Slam singles title, securing his first triumph at the French Open in 1959 and successfully defending the coveted trophy a year later.
With a staggering 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was widely considered the nation's finest player prior to the rise of current world number two and four-time major winner Jannik Sinner.
"Italian tennis is mourning an legend. Nicola Pietrangeli, the sole Italian honored 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 set a record 164 matches played for Italy in the prestigious team competition, winning 120 of them, and guided his country to its first title in 1976.
Officials of the Italian Open, an event where he was a double winner, commented: "We are profoundly saddened that we bid farewell to Nicola Pietrangeli, a veritable legend of Italian tennis..."
