Emma Raducanu missed the chance to win her first title since the 2021 US Open after a straight-sets loss to Sorana Cirstea in the Transylvania Open final. The top seed fell 6-0, 6-2 in just over an hour in Cluj, appearing to feel the effects of her marathon semi-final win against Oleksandra Oliynykova.
Romanian Cirstea, 35 and in her final year on the Tour, sealed the fourth WTA title of her 20-year career. Raducanu struggled against Cirstea's big hitting, losing her opening service game after saving five break points and failing to win a game in the first set.
Raducanu broke to love for her first game in the second set but then needed a medical timeout. She held serve for the first time to level at 2-2 but could not maintain momentum as Cirstea won three straight games to lead 5-2. Raducanu lost her serve for a sixth time as Cirstea clinched the title.
“It was great to be in a final again,” said Raducanu. “Sorana played great all week. I had a great week myself. Today I didn’t feel great, but it’s not going to take away from my week.”
There was better news for British No 4 Katie Boulter, who won her first WTA title since June 2024 at the Ostrava Open. Boulter beat Germany’s Tamara Korpatsch 5-7, 6-2, 6-1 to climb to 84 in the world rankings. “It feels incredible,” she said. “I’ve waited a long time for this one.”
At the Abu Dhabi Open, Czech qualifier Sara Bejlek sealed a surprise first WTA Tour win by beating Ekaterina Alexandrova 7-6 (5), 6-1 in the final. The 20-year-old will climb into the top 50 after the best week of her career.
