Cirstea wins second career title, 13 years after first

ISTANBUL: Romania’s Sorana Cirstea won the Istanbul claycourt tournament on Sunday, her second career title coming 13 years after her first.

The 31-year-old Romanian defeated top-seeded Elise Mertens of Belgium 6-1, 7-6 (7/3) in the final having not dropped a set all week.

Cirstea, ranked at 67 in the world, captured her maiden title at Tashkent in 2008.

Sunday was her fifth final, having made her maiden championship match as a 17-year-old qualifier at Budapest 2007.

Mertens, the world number 17, was playing in her 10th career final, and second of the season after her victory at the Gippsland Trophy in February.