Romania`s Sorana Cirstea and Russia`s Anna Kalinskaya formed a partnership for the very first time at the 2025 Mutua Madrid Open. They concluded a brilliant debut fortnight together by becoming WTA 1000 doubles champions.
In Sunday`s final, featuring two unseeded teams, the match went down to the wire. Cirstea and Kalinskaya narrowly defeated Veronika Kudermetova and Elise Mertens with a score of 6-7(10), 6-2, [12-10]. They managed to save one championship point in the deciding match tie-break.
The momentum shifted multiple times throughout the encounter. Cirstea and Kalinskaya found themselves trailing after losing the first set and being down a break at 7-6, 2-0. However, they staged a strong comeback to secure the victory after an unpredictable 2 hours and 14 minutes of play.
For both Cirstea and Kalinskaya, this win ends significant droughts for doubles titles. This is Kalinskaya`s fourth WTA doubles title and her first since 2022. Cirstea had an even longer wait for her sixth WTA doubles title, with her most recent previous win coming in 2019.
This triumph marks the first WTA 1000 title for both players in any category. Both were competing in their first WTA 1000 doubles finals. However, they have each reached WTA 1000 singles finals previously, finishing as runners-up: Cirstea at Toronto in 2013 and Kalinskaya at Dubai in 2024.
Cirstea and Kalinskaya had a perfect start to their partnership during this tournament. In their very first match as a duo, they upset the top-seeded pair of Gabriela Dabrowski and Erin Routliffe in a match tie-break. Building on this strong start, they progressed all the way to the final.
Meanwhile, in the other half of the draw, the reunited team of Kudermetova and Mertens also had an excellent run to reach the final. Kudermetova and Mertens were playing together again for the first time since their successful 2022 season, which culminated in winning the WTA Finals title.
The opening set of Sunday’s final saw six breaks of serve and was ultimately decided by a tense tie-break. Cirstea and Kalinskaya held four set points in the tie-break but were unable to convert them to take the one-set lead.
Kudermetova and Mertens fought back, with Kudermetova’s strong net play helping them convert their third set point after 1 hour and 13 minutes. An early 2-0 lead in the second set suggested that Kudermetova and Mertens might continue their successful reunion by claiming another team title.
However, the course of the match dramatically shifted from that point. Kalinskaya’s impactful returns and Cirstea’s aggressive volleys became dominant forces. They swept the subsequent six games to claim the second set and level the match. In contrast, Kudermetova and Mertens made 12 unforced errors compared to just four winners in that set.
The championship was ultimately decided in the match tie-break, which proved to be as closely contested as the rest of the final. Both teams successfully saved one championship point, leading to a 10-10 scoreline. A forehand error from Mertens then presented Cirstea and Kalinskaya with another opportunity to win. Kalinskaya seized this chance by hitting a decisive winning overhead, concluding the dramatic contest and securing the title.
