ATP Italian Open 1978 Draw & Results

Completed

Bjorn Borg won the 1978 Italian Open, defeating Adriano Panatta 1-6 6-3 6-1 4-6 6-3 in the final. The ATP 500 event was played May 22–29 on clay courts in Rome, Italy.

The Italian Open, officially the Internazionali BNL d'Italia, is the combined ATP and WTA event staged at Rome's Foro Italico.

Full tournament history →
Champion
Bjorn Borg
def. Adriano Panatta , 1-6 6-3 6-1 4-6 6-3
Dates
May 22 — May 29
Location
Rome, Italy
Category
ATP 500
Surface
Clay
Prize money
—

Arrows show an edition's recorded category and documented modern equivalent; unresolved editions keep their recorded category. Mapping details.

Results

Match type

62 recorded singles results

Italian Open 1978 match log
WinnerScoreLoserH2HMatch DataDateRound
F (1)
Bjorn Borg #3CH 1-6 6-3 6-1 4-6 6-3 Adriano Panatta #23CH H2H Match data May 29, 1978* F
SF (2)
Adriano Panatta #42CH 0-6 7-5 (ret.) Jose Higueras #24 H2H Match data May 28, 1978* SF
Bjorn Borg #3CH 6-4 6-3 6-0 Eddie Dibbs #6 H2H Match data May 28, 1978* SF
QF (4)
Bjorn Borg #3CH 6-2 6-1 Harold Solomon #12 H2H Match data May 28, 1978* QF
Adriano Panatta #42CH 7-6 6-4 Victor Amaya #64 H2H Match data May 28, 1978* QF
Jose Higueras #24 6-2 6-4 John Alexander #20 H2H Match data May 28, 1978* QF
Eddie Dibbs #6 6-2 6-1 John Lloyd — Match data May 28, 1978* QF
R16 (8)
John Alexander #20 6-7 6-4 6-4 Christophe Freyss H2H Match data May 27, 1978* R16
Victor Amaya #64 6-4 6-1 John Newcombe #18CH H2H Match data May 27, 1978* R16
Harold Solomon #12 6-4 3-6 6-0 Arthur Ashe #26 H2H Match data May 27, 1978* R16
Eddie Dibbs #6 7-5 6-3 Kim Warwick #38 H2H Match data May 27, 1978* R16
Jose Higueras #24 6-3 6-2 Brian Gottfried #5 H2H Match data May 27, 1978* R16
John Lloyd 6-4 4-6 7-6 Dick Crealy #91 — Match data May 27, 1978* R16
Bjorn Borg #3CH 6-2 6-4 Roscoe Tanner #11 H2H Match data May 27, 1978* R16
Adriano Panatta #42CH 5-7 6-3 7-6 Hank Pfister #30 H2H Match data May 27, 1978* R16
R32 (16)
Arthur Ashe #26 7-6 6-2 Christophe Roger-Vasselin H2H Match data May 25, 1978* R32
Roscoe Tanner #11 6-2 7-6 Jiri Granat #93 H2H Match data May 25, 1978* R32
Harold Solomon #12 6-4 4-6 6-2 Victor Pecci #58 H2H Match data May 25, 1978* R32
Adriano Panatta #42CH 7-6 6-4 Terry Moor #57 H2H Match data May 25, 1978* R32
Kim Warwick #38 6-3 6-3 Colin Dowdeswell #73 H2H Match data May 25, 1978* R32
Victor Amaya #64 4-6 6-1 6-4 Ivan Molina #97 H2H Match data May 25, 1978* R32
Eddie Dibbs #6 6-1 6-3 Jose Luis Clerc H2H Match data May 25, 1978* R32
Bjorn Borg #3CH 5-7 6-2 6-0 Eric Deblicker #72 H2H Match data May 25, 1978* R32
Brian Gottfried #5 6-1 6-3 Colin Dibley #53 H2H Match data May 25, 1978* R32
Jose Higueras #24 6-3 6-1 Patrice Dominguez #65 H2H Match data May 25, 1978* R32
John Newcombe #18CH 5-7 6-4 6-1 Bob Giltinan #74 H2H Match data May 25, 1978* R32
John Lloyd 7-6 3-6 6-4 Antonio Zugarelli #75 — Match data May 25, 1978* R32
Dick Crealy #91 4-6 6-4 6-2 Paolo Bertolucci #47 H2H Match data May 25, 1978* R32
Hank Pfister #30 6-3 6-3 Paul Mcnamee #82 H2H Match data May 25, 1978* R32
Christophe Freyss 6-4 6-3 Gianni Ocleppo H2H Match data May 25, 1978* R32
John Alexander #20 6-2 6-4 Tomas Smid #32 H2H Match data May 25, 1978* R32
R64 (31)
Jiri Granat #93 7-6 6-4 Tenny Svensson H2H Match data May 24, 1978* R64
Adriano Panatta #42CH 7-6 7-5 Vitas Gerulaitis #4DEF H2H Match data May 24, 1978* R64 Upset: winner had a 16 percent pre-match Elo win probability.
Christophe Freyss 3-6 7-5 7-5 Van Winitsky H2H Match data May 24, 1978* R64
Colin Dibley #53 6-3 6-7 7-6 Gilles Moretton H2H Match data May 24, 1978* R64
Roscoe Tanner #11 6-2 6-2 Bill Scanlon #89 H2H Match data May 24, 1978* R64
Brian Gottfried #5 6-2 5-7 6-2 Belus Prajoux H2H Match data May 24, 1978* R64
Antonio Zugarelli #75 6-4 2-6 6-1 Kjell Johansson #46 H2H Match data May 24, 1978* R64
Kim Warwick #38 6-3 7-5 Phil Dent #22 H2H Match data May 24, 1978* R64
Tomas Smid #32 6-2 6-2 Bernie Mitton #77 H2H Match data May 24, 1978* R64
John Alexander #20 3-6 6-0 6-1 Chris Lewis #44 H2H Match data May 24, 1978* R64
Hank Pfister #30 6-2 6-3 Joe Meyers H2H Match data May 24, 1978* R64
Terry Moor #57 3-6 6-1 6-4 Mike Fishbach #62 H2H Match data May 24, 1978* R64
Christophe Roger-Vasselin 6-1 7-5 Massimo Di Domenico — Match data May 24, 1978* R64
Ivan Molina #97 6-2 2-0 (ret.) Nick Saviano #56 H2H Match data May 24, 1978* R64
Eddie Dibbs #6 6-4 6-4 Jeff Borowiak #35 H2H Match data May 24, 1978* R64
Dick Crealy #91 0-6 7-6 6-3 Raul Ramirez #7CH H2H Match data May 24, 1978* R64 Upset: winner had a 10 percent pre-match Elo win probability.
Eric Deblicker #72 6-2 6-7 6-2 Roberto Lombardi H2H Match data May 24, 1978* R64
Colin Dowdeswell #73 4-6 6-3 6-2 Patrick Proisy #39 H2H Match data May 24, 1978* R64
Patrice Dominguez #65 7-6 6-1 Pascal Portes H2H Match data May 24, 1978* R64
Jose Higueras #24 6-1 6-4 Billy Martin #66 H2H Match data May 24, 1978* R64
Harold Solomon #12 6-3 6-1 Jan Kodes #59 H2H Match data May 24, 1978* R64
Paul Mcnamee #82 6-4 4-6 6-3 Brian Teacher #55 H2H Match data May 24, 1978* R64
Victor Amaya #64 6-3 7-6 Corrado Barazzutti #9 H2H Match data May 24, 1978* R64 Upset: winner had a 14 percent pre-match Elo win probability.
Gianni Ocleppo 6-4 6-1 Raymond Moore #49 H2H Match data May 24, 1978* R64
Victor Pecci #58 7-5 6-4 Rick Fagel H2H Match data May 24, 1978* R64
Bjorn Borg #3CH 4-6 6-0 6-2 Ricardo Ycaza #97 H2H Match data May 24, 1978* R64
Paolo Bertolucci #47 6-4 6-4 Robin Drysdale #67 H2H Match data May 24, 1978* R64
Arthur Ashe #26 3-6 6-1 6-3 Vincenzo Franchitti H2H Match data May 24, 1978* R64
Jose Luis Clerc 7-6 6-0 Heinz Gunthardt #48 H2H Match data May 24, 1978* R64
John Newcombe #18CH 7-6 6-1 Tom Gullikson — Match data May 24, 1978* R64
Bob Giltinan #74 7-6 5-7 6-4 Yannick Noah #96 H2H Match data May 24, 1978* R64

Tournament Records

The leading Open Era records for Italian Open.

Most Titles

Open Era singles titles.

  1. Rafael Nadal 10 titles

Most Finals

Champion or runner-up finishes. 2 players share this record.

  1. Novak Djokovic 12 finals

Most Match Wins

Recorded main-draw match wins.

  1. Rafael Nadal 70 wins

Most Appearances

Editions with a recorded main-draw match. 2 players share this record.

  1. Novak Djokovic 19 appearances

View the full Italian Open record book →

Open Era main-draw singles records from 1968 onward. Ranking records begin where reliable entering rankings are available.

Recent Finals

Recent Italian Open finals
WinnerScoreRunner-upH2HMatch DataSeasonSurface
Jannik Sinner #1 6-4 6-4 Casper Ruud #25 H2H Match data 2026 Clay
Carlos Alcaraz #3 7-6(5) 6-1 Jannik Sinner #1 H2H Match data 2025 Clay
Alexander Zverev #5 6-4 7-5 Nicolas Jarry #24 H2H Match data 2024 Clay
Daniil Medvedev #3 7-5 7-5 Holger Rune #7 H2H Match data 2023 Clay
Novak Djokovic #1 6-0 7-6(5) Stefanos Tsitsipas #5 H2H Match data 2022 Clay

View full tournament history →

Related Tournaments

Other ATP 500 tournaments in 1978

Previous editions of Italian Open

Frequently Asked Questions

Where is Italian Open held?
Italian Open is held in Rome, Italy.
Who is the latest recorded Italian Open winner?
The 2026 Italian Open was won by Jannik Sinner, who defeated Casper Ruud 6-4 6-4.
Who has won the most Italian Open titles?
Rafael Nadal has won 10 Italian Open titles, the most by any player in the Open Era (since 1968).
When was the first Italian Open played?
The first edition of Italian Open was held in 1930.
What surface is Italian Open played on?
Italian Open is played on clay courts.