Anhelina Kalinina, the No. 4 seed at the tournament, lived up to her status as a favorite at the Transylvania Open with a convincing victory over Gabriela Ruse. The Ukrainian player secured a 6-2, 6-3 win.
A finalist at the 2023 Transylvania Open, Gabriela Ruse couldn’t find the necessary resources this time to counter an opponent who played inspired tennis from start to finish.
Both Kalinina—who started the year with a semifinal run in Brisbane, and Gabriela Ruse, who battled through qualifying in Melbourne and came close to defeating Madison Keys in the first round, had promising starts to the season. This was one reason why their match was expected to be highly balanced. However, Kalinina executed her game plan flawlessly: she was precise with her first shots after the serve, defended well when needed, and absorbed the power of Gabriela’s shots with ease.
In the next round, Anhelina Kalinina will face Dutch player Suzan Lamens, who won a tight match against Anna Bondar, 7-6, 7-6.
