Sorana Cirstea defeated Aryna Sabalenka, 2-6, 6-3, 7-5, in the third round of the Italian Open.
The Romanian secured her first career win over a world number one at the age of 36, proving age truly is just a number.
Is Aryna Sabalenka playing well enough to win the French Open?
She's 4-2 on clay this year…
Cirstea is planning to retire at the end of the 2026 season, even though she is playing some of the best tennis of her life.
Fans of Cirstea were given some hope after the match, however, as she outlined what would need to happen for her to reconsider retirement.
Sorana Cirstea promises she will ‘think’ about retirement U-turn if she wins the Italian Open
During her post-match interview, Cirstea was asked what it would take for her to change her mind.
“Maybe if I win the tournament, I promise I will think about it,” she said.
“Yes, absolutely!
“I just want to thank everyone for the support.
“It’s amazing what I feel here in Rome, and that’s why I still play, for these emotions, for this support, for the people, and thank you again for making me feel so welcome here in Rome.”
There it is: if Cirstea can win the 2026 Italian Open, she may consider extending her legendary career.
And although she is far from the favourite to lift the title, you wouldn’t put it past her.
Cirstea has been in fine form this year and has already won a WTA title in 2026, at her home Transylvania Open.
Sorana Cirstea’s 2026 results
| Tournament | Performance | Wins | Defeat |
| Brisbane International | Third round | 2 (Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, Jelena Ostapenko) | Aryna Sabalenka |
| Australian Open | Second round | 1 (Eva Lys) | Naomi Osaka |
| Transylvania Open | Champion | 5 (Kamilla Rakhimova, Tamara Zidansek, Anastasia Potapova, Daria Snigur, Emma Raducanu) | – |
| Dubai Tennis Championships | Third round | 2 (Aliaksandra Sasnovich, Linda Noskova) | Alex Eala |
| Indian Wells | Third round | 2 (Tatjana Maria, Diana Shnaider) | Linda Noskova |
| Miami Open | Fourth round | 3 (Zhang Shuai, Linda Noskova, Elise Mertens) | Coco Gauff |
| Linz Open | Quarter-final | 2 (Sinja Kraus, Dalma Galfi) | Mirra Andreeva |
| Open de Rouen | Semi-final | 3 (Fiona Ferro, Wang Xinyu, Anna Bondar | Walkover |
| Madrid Open | Third round | 1 (Tyra Grant) | Coco Gauff |
| Italian Open | Fourth round* | 2 (Tatjana Maria, Aryna Sabalenka) |
Those results have helped Cirstea reach 26th in the ‘Live WTA Rankings’, just five spots off her career high.
If she were to win the title, she could reach as high as 15th in the world.
Cirstea won’t want to get ahead of herself, but deserves to celebrate her landmark win.
“I’m very happy, Aryna [Sabalenka] is an amazing player, she doesn’t need any introduction, she’s number one in the world,” she said.
“I’m very happy with the win, I thought I played really well today.
“I’m working really hard, so it’s nice to have these results.”
During Sky Sports’ post-match coverage, British tennis star Liam Broady delivered his verdict on Cirstea’s big win.
“Wow! What a performance to get through that,” he said.
“You could see she was fighting some demons, especially after serving for it the way she did in the previous service game. It’s a fantastic effort and well deserved.
“The better player won on the day; she was so determined.
“Sadly, the stats won’t show the heart, the grit, and the determination that she showcased today.
“That’s what got her through the match in the end.”
Cirstea will be hoping to show that same grit when she returns for her fourth-round match against Linda Noskova next week.
What’s next for Aryna Sabalenka after shock defeat in Rome?
Sabalenka’s clay-court season hasn’t quite gone to plan.
After missing the Stuttgart Open, Sabalenka returned in Madrid, where she failed to defend her title.
Now losing in the third round of Rome, the Belarusian will travel to Paris with just a handful of clay-court wins under her belt.
Aryna Sabalenka’s 2026 clay-court record
- Madrid Open 2R [WIN] vs Peyton Stearns
- Madrid Open 3R [WIN] vs Jaqueline Cristian
- Madrid Open 4R [WIN] vs Naomi Osaka
- Madrid Open QF [LOSS] vs Hailey Baptiste
- Italian Open 2R [WIN] vs Barbora Krejcikova
- Italian Open 3R [LOSS] vs Sorana Cirstea
It’s too early to panic, but Sabalenka certainly looks more vulnerable on clay than she did 12 months ago.
Perhaps a return to the French Open final isn’t quite the foregone conclusion it seemed…
The 2026 French Open begins on Sunday, May 24.
