Sorana Cirstea retires from tennis immediately after Hong Kong Open defeat

Romanian tennis star Sorana Cirstea announced her retirement from tennis immediately after losing her quarter-final at the Hong Kong Open. On Friday night, moments after her defeat to Alexandra Shubladze, she made it clear she would not return to professional tennis.

Cirstea lost the quarter-final 6-2, 6-3. The upset defeat to Russia's Shubladze was followed at once by news of her decision. The match at the Hong Kong Tennis Open (WTA 250) turned out to be the last of Cirstea's career.

Cirstea was the No. 1 seed at the event and the 15th-ranked player in the world. At the start of the season she had said 2026 would be her final year on tour, and after the loss in Hong Kong she followed through on that plan.

Speaking in the press zone after the match, Cirstea said the decision was clear given how things had ended in Asia. In her words, 'I was running on empty, I had no energy left. It's been a long year. I need to step back and process all of this before making a final announcement, which should come in a few weeks.'

The announcement shocked the tennis world, because Cirstea was in the best form of her career even as she lost. Her No. 15 ranking was the highest of her career.

At 36, Cirstea became just the fourth woman age 36 or older to finish a season ranked among the world's top 16 in the last 40 years. The others were Martina Navratilova, Serena Williams and Venus Williams.

In May, Cirstea defeated then-No. 1-ranked Aryna Sabalenka at the Italian Open. Fans had already begun pleading with her to keep playing. At the Italian Open in May she said, 'Everyone has been asking me, like, you cannot retire, you cannot retire!'

Cirstea said she wants some time to think before a final announcement. But by declaring her retirement right after the loss in Hong Kong, she made clear that the exhaustion of a long season had forced the decision.