H2H data updated: 2026-07-18 02:15 UTC

John McEnroe vs Ilie Nastase H2H: 5-3

John McEnroe holds a 5–3 lead over Ilie Nastase in their ATP head-to-head. Across 8 main-draw meetings, John McEnroe leads 3–0 on carpet and 2–1 on hard courts. Most recently, John McEnroe won the 1980 Wct Challenge Cup round-robin match 6-0 6-3.

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John McEnroe
USA Age 67 Left-Handed 180 cm / 5'11"
H2H
5 – 3
8 main draw meetings
Ilie Nastase
ROU Age 79 Right-Handed 183 cm / 6'0"

H2H Match Log

DateTournamentCategoryRoundSurfaceWinnerScoreLoserMatch
Dec 9, 1980 Wct Challenge Cup ATP 250 RR Carpet John McEnroe #2 6-0 6-3 Ilie Nastase #77 Match data
Mar 27, 1980* Milan ATP 250 R32 Carpet John McEnroe #2 6-1 6-4 Ilie Nastase #59 Match data
Sep 1, 1979* US Open Grand Slam R64 Hard John McEnroe #3 6-4 4-6 6-3 6-2 Ilie Nastase #23 Match data
Feb 3, 1979* Richmond Wct ATP 250 QF Carpet John McEnroe #4 6-3 3-6 6-2 Ilie Nastase #12 Match data
Dec 12, 1978 Wct Challenge Cup ATP 250 RR Hard John McEnroe #5 6-5 3-6 6-4 Ilie Nastase #15 Match data
Jul 15, 1978* Forest Hills Wct ATP 250 SF Clay Ilie Nastase #13 6-3 7-6 John McEnroe #19 Match data
Apr 24, 1977* Virginia Beach ATP 250 SF Clay Ilie Nastase #4 7-5 4-6 6-3 John McEnroe #264 Match data
Feb 19, 1977* Ocean City ATP 250 R16 Hard Ilie Nastase #3 7-5 6-4 John McEnroe #264 Match data

* Estimated match date where the exact historical date is unavailable.

Career Comparison

Player Current Peak Pts Elo W L Win % GS 1000 Finals 500 250 Titles
John McEnroe #1,219 #1 1,506 2,496 833 189 81.5% 7 3 3 0 63 76
Ilie Nastase #1,075 #1 0 2,260 859 331 72.2% 2 4 3 0 55 64

Career Progression by Age

Seasons are aligned by the age each player spent most of that calendar year. GS and Titles are cumulative career totals through that season.

Age John McEnroe Ilie Nastase
YrW-LWin %RankEloGSTitles YrW-LWin %RankEloGSTitles
17 1976 1–1 50.0% #264 1,515 0 0 — — — — — — —
18 1977 28–14 66.7% #21 1,852 0 0 — — — — — — —
19 1978 77–19 80.2% #4 2,149 0 5 — — — — — — —
20 1979 88–13 87.1% #3 2,284 1 15 — — — — — — —
21 1980 83–16 83.8% #2 2,255 2 24 1968 41–14 74.5% — 1,756 0 3
22 1981 67–9 88.2% #1 2,265 4 33 1969 27–22 55.1% — 1,824 0 5
23 1982 64–10 86.5% #1 2,278 4 38 1970 60–20 75.0% — 1,970 0 7
24 1983 62–9 87.3% #1 2,306 5 45 1971 73–13 84.9% — 2,079 0 14
25 1984 71–2 97.3% #1 2,475 7 58 1972 106–20 84.1% — 2,157 1 25
26 1985 69–9 88.5% #2 2,273 7 66 1973 118–17 87.4% #1 2,208 2 41
27 1986 22–5 81.5% #14 2,180 7 69 1974 80–21 79.2% #10 2,153 2 48
28 1987 30–10 75.0% #10 2,094 7 69 1975 91–21 81.2% #7 2,170 2 54
29 1988 29–9 76.3% #11 2,023 7 71 1976 76–17 81.7% #3 2,179 2 59
30 1989 45–11 80.4% #4 2,096 7 74 1977 44–18 71.0% #9 2,092 2 62
31 1990 33–15 68.8% #13 1,967 7 75 1978 45–21 68.2% #16 2,059 2 64
32 1991 32–18 64.0% #28 1,831 7 76 1979 28–25 52.8% #49 1,795 2 64
33 1992 32–18 64.0% #20 1,882 7 76 1980 19–24 44.2% #77 1,740 2 64
34 — — — — — — — 1981 26–27 49.1% #74 1,730 2 64
35 1994 0–1 0.0% #1219 1,871 7 76 1982 14–24 36.8% #86 1,633 2 64
36 — — — — — — — 1983 6–11 35.3% #118 1,595 2 64
37 — — — — — — — 1984 4–12 25.0% #202 1,574 2 64
38 — — — — — — — 1985 1–4 20.0% #431 1,535 2 64