Emma Raducanu missed the chance to win her first title since the 2021 US Open after a straight-sets defeat to home favourite Sorana Cirstea in the Transylvania Open final. The British No 1, seeded top, lost 6-0, 6-2 in just over an hour in Cluj, appearing to feel the effects of her marathon semi-final win over Ukraine's Oleksandra Oliynykova.
Romanian Cirstea, 35 and in her final year on the Tour, secured the fourth WTA title of her 20-year career. Raducanu, whose father is Romanian, struggled against Cirstea's powerful hitting, losing her opening service game after saving five break points and failing to win a game in the first set.
After falling 2-0 down in the second set, Raducanu broke Cirstea to love for her first game but then required a medical timeout. She held serve for the first time to level at 2-2 but could not sustain momentum, losing the next three games. Serving to stay in the match, she lost her serve for the sixth time, handing Cirstea the title.
“It was great to be in a final again,” Raducanu said. “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.”
In other British tennis news, Katie Boulter won her first WTA title since June 2024 at the Ostrava Open. The British No 4, ranked 120th, defeated Germany's Tamara Korpatsch 5-7, 6-2, 6-1, climbing to 84th in the world rankings. “It feels incredible,” Boulter said. “I’ve waited a long time for this one.”
