Immediately after her impressive win over Lucrezia Stefanini in the first round of the Transylvania Open 2026, Jaqueline Cristian attended the press conference to speak about how she felt the support of the crowd, how she evaluates her level of play, her ambitions for what she calls “a tournament close to my heart,” and how she sees her recent rise.
“It was a very tough match (laughs). It really was a very tough match. It’s never easy to start your tournament at home. Even though I started the match very well, my opponent raised her level tremendously. I made a few small mistakes — nothing major — but she took her chances and I let her into the match. After that, the mental part came into play. That’s what I’m most proud of today: it was a continuous battle, a very high level of tennis, a very physical match, where I managed to stay strong. I’m very happy and confident for the next round,” said Jaqueline, who will face Daria Snigur on Wednesday.
“I feel so much energy from the crowd that I forget everything — the fatigue, the heavy legs, the pressure of the score. I get lost in the applause and the energy of the people, and I feed off it before every point. It’s an extra push of confidence, at least that’s how I felt it today. I tried to translate that into every point on court and to hold on to every bit of ‘extra’ I had today in order to carry the match through and win.”
Jaqueline said she had really missed playing in front of the Cluj crowd. “To play on that court, I felt like I was at home. I told myself I was on court and I should take full advantage of the crowd’s energy. Last year I couldn’t play here, and I missed it. I tried to stay balanced, not to get carried away too much, and I truly enjoyed it — even on the points I lost. It was a battle, and I was happy to see the crowd there for me. They gave me courage, and I felt happy.”
Speaking about the positive path she is currently on — reaching the best ranking of her career, world No. 35 — Jaqueline added:
“I really want to continue on the path I’m on right now. I’m training well, I’m healthy, I work hard every day, and that means a lot because that’s what you show in matches. We keep trying to adjust, to improve my game and my attitude, and simply to be better than I was yesterday.”
