ATP Italian Open 1981 Draw & Results

Completed

Jose Luis Clerc won the 1981 Italian Open, defeating Victor Pecci 6-3 6-4 6-0 in the final. The ATP 500 event was played May 18–25 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
Jose Luis Clerc
def. Victor Pecci , 6-3 6-4 6-0
Dates
May 18 — May 25
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

60 recorded singles results

Italian Open 1981 match log
WinnerScoreLoserH2HMatch DataDateRound
F (1)
Jose Luis Clerc #7 6-3 6-4 6-0 Victor Pecci #18 H2H Match data May 25, 1981* F
SF (2)
Jose Luis Clerc #8 3-6 7-5 6-0 6-2 Ivan Lendl #5 H2H Match data May 24, 1981* SF
Victor Pecci #21 7-6 6-4 7-6 Guillermo Vilas #6DEF H2H Match data May 24, 1981* SF
QF (4)
Guillermo Vilas #6DEF 6-4 3-6 6-2 Balazs Taroczy #17 H2H Match data May 24, 1981* QF
Ivan Lendl #5 6-0 6-2 Eddie Dibbs #19 H2H Match data May 24, 1981* QF
Victor Pecci #21 6-2 5-7 7-6 Peter Mcnamara — Match data May 24, 1981* QF
Jose Luis Clerc #8 6-3 3-6 7-6 Adriano Panatta #22CH H2H Match data May 24, 1981* QF
R16 (8)
Peter Mcnamara 7-5 6-3 Corrado Barazzutti #29 — Match data May 23, 1981* R16
Adriano Panatta #22CH 6-0 6-3 Marko Ostoja H2H Match data May 23, 1981* R16
Balazs Taroczy #17 6-1 1-6 6-1 Angel Gimenez #72 H2H Match data May 23, 1981* R16
Ivan Lendl #5 7-5 6-2 Bruce Manson #76 H2H Match data May 23, 1981* R16
Jose Luis Clerc #8 6-1 6-2 Jose Luis Damiani #48 H2H Match data May 23, 1981* R16
Eddie Dibbs #19 6-3 4-6 6-3 Ricardo Cano #57 H2H Match data May 23, 1981* R16
Guillermo Vilas #6DEF 6-1 6-1 Jose Higueras #25 H2H Match data May 23, 1981* R16
Victor Pecci #21 6-2 6-4 Vitas Gerulaitis #102× CH H2H Match data May 23, 1981* R16
R32 (15)
Jose Luis Damiani #48 6-3 6-0 Mel Purcell #28 H2H Match data May 21, 1981* R32 Upset: winner had a 19 percent pre-match Elo win probability.
Adriano Panatta #22CH 6-0 6-2 Tom Gullikson — Match data May 21, 1981* R32
Ivan Lendl #5 6-1 6-1 Ferdi Taygan #100 H2H Match data May 21, 1981* R32
Jose Luis Clerc #8 6-2 6-3 John Fitzgerald #87 H2H Match data May 21, 1981* R32
Guillermo Vilas #6DEF 6-1 6-2 Tony Giammalva #54 H2H Match data May 21, 1981* R32
Jose Higueras #25 6-2 6-1 Manuel Orantes #71CH H2H Match data May 21, 1981* R32
Balazs Taroczy #17 6-2 6-2 Rick Fagel #99 H2H Match data May 21, 1981* R32
Corrado Barazzutti #29 0-6 6-3 6-3 Brian Gottfried #13 H2H Match data May 21, 1981* R32
Bruce Manson #76 6-4 7-6 Mario Martinez — Match data May 21, 1981* R32
Angel Gimenez #72 6-4 6-3 Paul Mcnamee #32 H2H Match data May 21, 1981* R32
Eddie Dibbs #19 4-6 6-4 6-0 Buster C Mottram #46 H2H Match data May 21, 1981* R32
Ricardo Cano #57 6-4 6-4 Gustavo Guerrero H2H Match data May 21, 1981* R32
Victor Pecci #21 3-6 6-3 6-3 Thierry Tulasne #69 H2H Match data May 21, 1981* R32
Marko Ostoja 7-6 6-4 Zeljko Franulovic H2H Match data May 21, 1981* R32
Vitas Gerulaitis #102× CH 4-3 (ret.) Belus Prajoux H2H Match data May 21, 1981* R32
R64 (30)
Rick Fagel #99 6-1 6-1 Mark Edmondson #73 H2H Match data May 20, 1981* R64
Manuel Orantes #71CH 6-3 6-3 Slobodan Zivojinovic H2H Match data May 20, 1981* R64
Angel Gimenez #72 6-1 6-0 Maurice Hunter H2H Match data May 20, 1981* R64
Peter Mcnamara 6-4 6-0 Eduardo Bengoechea #86 — Match data May 20, 1981* R64
Ivan Lendl #5 6-2 6-1 Gianni Ocleppo #56 H2H Match data May 20, 1981* R64
Tom Gullikson 7-6 6-4 Ilie Nastase #632× CH — Match data May 20, 1981* R64
Vitas Gerulaitis #102× CH 6-3 6-4 Paolo Bertolucci #95 H2H Match data May 20, 1981* R64
Adriano Panatta #22CH 6-2 6-1 Gabriel Urpi H2H Match data May 20, 1981* R64
Jose Luis Damiani #48 6-2 6-3 Trey Waltke #50 H2H Match data May 20, 1981* R64
Corrado Barazzutti #29 6-4 6-2 Roberto Arguello H2H Match data May 20, 1981* R64
Victor Pecci #21 6-7 6-2 6-3 Jaime Fillol #93 H2H Match data May 20, 1981* R64
Jose Luis Clerc #8 7-5 6-1 Terry Moor #37 H2H Match data May 20, 1981* R64
Jose Higueras #25 6-4 7-6 Billy Martin H2H Match data May 20, 1981* R64
Buster C Mottram #46 6-4 1-6 6-3 Andres Gomez #68 H2H Match data May 20, 1981* R64
Brian Gottfried #13 4-6 6-2 6-2 Raul Ramirez #41CH H2H Match data May 20, 1981* R64
Guillermo Vilas #6DEF 6-2 6-3 Carlos Kirmayr #45 H2H Match data May 20, 1981* R64
Thierry Tulasne #69 6-1 6-3 Hans Gildemeister — Match data May 20, 1981* R64
Marko Ostoja 3-6 6-3 6-1 Tomas Smid #20 H2H Match data May 20, 1981* R64 Upset: winner had a 7 percent pre-match Elo win probability.
Zeljko Franulovic 6-1 6-3 Tim Gullikson — Match data May 20, 1981* R64
John Fitzgerald #87 6-3 3-6 7-6 Ricardo Ycaza #52 H2H Match data May 20, 1981* R64
Belus Prajoux 7-5 6-0 Pablo Arraya H2H Match data May 20, 1981* R64
Ricardo Cano #57 3-6 7-5 6-2 Wojtek Fibak #16 H2H Match data May 20, 1981* R64 Upset: winner had a 16 percent pre-match Elo win probability.
Paul Mcnamee #32 6-4 7-5 John Alexander H2H Match data May 20, 1981* R64
Balazs Taroczy #17 6-2 6-2 Francesco Cancellotti H2H Match data May 20, 1981* R64
Tony Giammalva #54 6-0 6-1 Luca Bottazzi H2H Match data May 20, 1981* R64
Eddie Dibbs #19 6-1 6-3 Pascal Portes #42 H2H Match data May 20, 1981* R64
Gustavo Guerrero 3-6 6-2 6-2 Antonio Zugarelli H2H Match data May 20, 1981* R64
Mel Purcell #28 6-4 6-0 Alejandro Pierola H2H Match data May 20, 1981* R64
Bruce Manson #76 2-6 7-6 7-6 Marcos Hocevar #66 H2H Match data May 20, 1981* R64
Ferdi Taygan #100 6-2 7-5 Richard Meyer #98 H2H Match data May 20, 1981* 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 1981

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.