Sorana Cirstea and Anna Kalinskaya developed an immediate friendship and success as a doubles team in their first tournament together at the 2025 Mutua Madrid Open.
New champions crowned in Madrid! 👑👑
Cirstea/Kalinskaya take the women’s doubles 🏆 after beating Kudermetova/Mertens in a thrilling final 6-7, 6-2, 12-10.@WTA | #MMOPEN pic.twitter.com/rSjBvzI7E8
— #MMOPEN (@MutuaMadridOpen) May 4, 2025
How Sorana Cirstea and Anna Kalinskaya Got To The Mutua Madrid Open Final
The pair hoped to play a couple of matches but could not have envisioned their success. In the first round, they defeated the 2024 WTA Finals doubles champions, Erin Routliffe and Gabriela Dabrowski, 6-3, 4-6, 10-7.
In Friday’s semifinal, they took out doubles veterans Jelena Ostapenko and Su-wei Hsieh in straight sets.
The final was their toughest test, against the 2022 WTA Finals doubles champions, Elise Mertens and Veronika Kudermetova, who are back together in their first tournament together after a two-plus-year hiatus.
Sorena Cirstea & Anna Kalinskaya come back from 6-7, 0-2 down on return to beat Veronika Kudermetova & Elise Mertens 6-7, 6-2, 12-10 in the Madrid final.
They were down 3-6 & saved 1 MP in match TB.
1st Masters 1000 title for both, teamed up together for the 1st time in Madrid. pic.twitter.com/J4mpJHyENQ
— edgeAI (@edgeAIapp) May 4, 2025
Sorana Cirstea and Anna Kalinskaya managed the nerves and pressure of the final. They did not get down after losing the first set in a 10-12 tiebreaker when they had opportunities to win the set. Then, they went down 0-2 in the second set, and things were looking bleak. They won six straight games to force a tiebreaker.
THE MOMENT! ✨
Kalinskaya and Cirstea left it all on the court to take home the trophy in Madrid ! #MMOPEN pic.twitter.com/nY3o9u1NMp
— wta (@WTA) May 4, 2025
Both teams had match points in the tiebreaker, and it was a couple of bounces that made the difference. It was a very entertaining 2 1/2 hour final that was impossible to predict with the twists and turns and many service breaks.
It will be interesting to see where Cirstea and Kalinskaya go from here. Winning a 1000-level tournament the first time on the court together is an anomaly, but many think they should continue playing the clay-court season to see what else they can accomplish.
Their entertaining and joyful demeanor was pleasant to watch, and it was obvious that each helped the other through the challenges of the final match.
