At the press conference after the singles draw for the Transylvania Open, Patrick Ciorcilă and Sorana Cîrstea talked about this year’s edition of the tournament in Cluj.
“I am honored that it’s the third edition of Transylvania Open,” Patrick Ciorcilă began. “Few people know that this edition has been a real struggle – we were very close to not having this license. We have had many withdrawals, and I don’t want to ignore that, especially since there have been many last-minute withdrawals. But we, as organizers, were also upset, and we wanted to have the best possible lineup. We have always been transparent and communicated exactly which players we knew would come; and we’ve talked a lot with them, from Caroline Garcia to Donna Vekic. It’s the end of the year, and it’s understandable on one hand that many have withdrawn, but I believe that certain things should change for organizers so that we don’t suffer in terms of our image after communicating with many top players (who then can’t participate).
Many people probably bought tickets because we communicated with top players. We’re sorry, but we, in the same measure, want to have the best possible lineup, and we have the best intentions. On a positive note: we have a strong tournament, many Romanian players on the roster, and Sorana was very eager to come to Cluj. Gabriela Ruse has a very tough draw again, just like two years ago when she played Simona Halep in the first round. Now she’s playing on the line of the second seed. We also have other Romanians like Jaqueline Christian, Patricia Țig, Miriam Bulgaru, and Ana Bogdan, who is one of us from Cluj. It promises to be a very good and highly competitive tournament.
For the semifinals and finals, we are 95% sold out. We hope to have full stands, and we hope for semifinals with four Romanians and a final with two Romanians, which would be sensational!”
Sorana Cîrstea, the top seed of the tournament, added:
“I want to thank you for this opportunity to play at home; it means a lot to me. This tournament is at much higher standards than a WTA 250. Everything is exemplary, and I am very proud, just like the other Romanian athletes, of what has been achieved here. I thank you (Patrick Ciorcilă) for the efforts you make, I know behind the scenes how hard it was to get this tournament and how you fought to have this tennis event in Cluj. I’m glad to be here; in 2018, I played here with the Fed Cup team. Last year, unfortunately, I was injured, but I’m happy to be in shape for this tournament. As you know, I asked my coach to plan in such a way that I arrive in Cluj in the best possible shape. I sincerely hope to stay here until the final, if possible. It’s a strong tournament, and I believe there will be beautiful matches, and the audience will have a lot to see. I’m very excited to be here with you in Cluj.
It’s a medium to slow surface, which, I believe, can highlight my strengths. I hope there will be as many people as possible with us. I have only words of praise for Patrick and for Cluj.”
