British tennis enjoyed an extraordinary Saturday with two of its players contesting WTA finals, one culminating in triumph, the other ending in frustration. In the Czech Republic, Katie Boulter produced a gritty comeback to lift the Ostrava Open trophy, while several hundred miles away in Romania, Emma Raducanu endured a punishing afternoon as Sorana Cirstea swept her aside in front of a home crowd.
Raducanu arrived at the Transylvania Open in Cluj-Napoca chasing her first title since her unforgettable US Open triumph as a teenager, but the occasion quickly turned sour. Top seed and British No. 1, she struggled to match the intensity of the experienced Romanian, who dictated proceedings from the opening game and never loosened her grip. Cirstea needed just over an hour to seal a ruthless 6-0 6-2 victory, claiming the fourth WTA title of her long career.
The match came less than 24 hours after Raducanu had spent close to three hours battling through a draining semifinal against Oleksandra Oliynykova, and the physical toll was evident. She appeared flat early, surrendered the first set without registering a game, and soon found herself trailing again in the second. After briefly halting play to receive medical checks, she managed to steady herself and claw back to 2-2, but the resurgence was short-lived. A double fault on championship point sealed the result, ending Raducanu’s hopes in abrupt fashion.
Afterwards, the 23-year-old was candid about the circumstances, explaining she had already been dealing with illness before the tournament and felt exhausted from the outset. Still, she stressed that simply reaching a final again mattered more than the scoreline, calling the week progress after a long period of disruption caused by injuries and coaching changes.
Despite the heavy defeat, Raducanu spoke warmly of the atmosphere in Romania, where her father’s roots lie, and said the support made her feel at ease throughout the event. Her next challenge comes quickly, with a first-round clash against Camila Osorio awaiting at the season’s first WTA 1000 event in Doha.
While Raducanu’s run ended painfully, Boulter ensured Britain did not leave the weekend empty-handed.
In Ostrava, the 29-year-old showed resilience after dropping the opening set against Germany’s Tamara Korpatsch. Boulter had briefly seized control late in the first set, only for Korpatsch to reel off a flurry of games and edge ahead. From there, however, the momentum swung decisively.
Boulter broke early in the second set and this time protected her advantage with authority, loosening up on serve and tightening her grip in the rallies. The final set became increasingly one-sided as she raced through the games, closing out a 5-7 6-2 6-1 victory in two hours.
This is Boulter’s fourth career WTA singles title and her second on hard courts, adding to her grass-court successes in Nottingham. The win also carries ranking significance. After slipping outside the Top 100 late last year, Boulter is set to climb back into the mid-80s.
