Sorana Cirstea wins to open title defense in Istanbul

Defending champion Sorana Cirstea won her opening match at the Istanbul Championship, beating Kamilla Rakhimova of Russia 6-4, 6-1 on Tuesday.

Cirstea ended a 13-year wait for her second career singles title last year when she upset Elise Mertens in the final.

Defending champion Sorana Cirstea won her opening match at the Istanbul Championship, beating Kamilla Rakhimova of Russia 6-4, 6-1 on Tuesday.

The 32-year-old Romanian ended a 13-year wait for her second career singles title last year when she upset Elise Mertens in the final. The second-seeded Cirstea next faces Dutch player Arantxa Rus at the clay-court competition.

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Third-seeded Veronika Kudermetova of Russia also advanced to the second round with a 6-2, 6-0 win over compatriot Marina Melnikova.

Mertens is again the top seed in Istanbul and plays a first-round match against Rebecca Peterson of Sweden on Wednesday when fourth-seeded Anhelina Kalinina of Ukraine faces Petra Martic in the first round.