Aryna Sabalenka’s clay-court campaign suffered another shock setback on Saturday when the world No. 1 was defeated 2-6, 6-3, 7-5 by Sorana Cirstea in the third round of the Italian Open, marking her second consecutive upset loss and her earliest departure from any competition since February 2025.
Sabalenka had appeared completely dominant early on, sweeping through the opening set and racing to 2-0 in the second before the 36-year-old Romanian staged a remarkable turnaround. Cirstea struck with bold, attacking tennis across the final two sets, pushing Sabalenka deep behind the baseline and capitalising on an opponent growing increasingly error-prone.
Meanwhile, Sabalenka and Coco Gauff are in agreement on players needing to take a stand. The world No. 1 also requested a medical timeout while down 4-3 in the deciding set, receiving attention on her lower back, but was unable to mount a full recovery, and Cirstea sealed the victory to register her maiden win over a world No. 1, having previously dropped all 12 sets in previous encounters with the sport’s top-ranked player.
“I feel like I didn’t play well from the beginning till the end,” she said, after the match. “I started really well, but then I kind of dropped the level. Felt like my body was limiting me from performing on the highest level. She stepped in and played incredible tennis. Didn’t really give me many opportunities. But I guess we never lose, we only learn, so it’s OK.”
She also addressed concerns over her fitness ahead of the French Open. “Probably it’s my lower back, connected to the hip, which was kind of limiting me from full rotation,” she said. “I guess we are just going to have some days off. We’re going to spend it on recovery. That’s the plan I believe for now.”
On social media, Sabalenka struck the same positive note, sharing photographs from Rome alongside a message that cast the defeat as a chance to grow. “Not every story ends the way you want, but every chapter teaches you something,” she wrote on Instagram. “Rome, thank you for the love. Ciao bella, see you soon.”
The defeat was her third of the season, bringing her 2026 record to 27-3. She began the year in stunning fashion, claiming the Australian Open title in Brisbane before securing back-to-back WTA 1000 crowns at Indian Wells and Miami.
She stormed through 26 of her first 27 matches before suffering a shock defeat to Hailey Baptiste in Madrid last week — a match in which Baptiste saved six match points. Back-to-back early clay-court exits now cast doubt over her preparations for Roland Garros, where she reached the final last year only to fall to Coco Gauff.