Cirstea Leads Guo 6-1, 6-5 in Wuhan Return

Sorana Cirstea moved within reach of victory in her return to professional tennis at the Wuhan Open in China on October 13, 2026, taking the first set 6-1 against Hanyu Guo and building a 6-5 lead in the second set. The Romanian, ranked No. 16 in the world and seeded 12th, resumed competition after a calf injury forced her to take a break following the US Open, according to live coverage from gsp.ro.

The match began at 8:35 a.m. Romania time on Wuhan's Central Court after the preceding contest between Katerina Siniakova and Liudmila Samsonova delayed the scheduled start. Guo, 28, is ranked No. 240 and entered the main draw with a wild card from tournament organizers, according to gsp.ro and flashscore.ro.

Cirstea dominated the opening set, which lasted 36 minutes. She secured multiple breaks of serve and eventually won 6-1, although Guo created a break-point opportunity that the Romanian successfully defended before closing out the set.

The second set initially appeared similarly one-sided, with Cirstea racing to a 4-0 advantage through a combination of service holds and breaks. Guo then recovered, winning four consecutive games to level the set at 4-4 before moving ahead 5-4, putting Cirstea under pressure to extend the match.

Cirstea responded by regaining control, winning the next two games to take a 6-5 lead and move within one game of completing the victory, according to the live score reported by gsp.ro.

The Wuhan tournament marks Cirstea's first appearance since her September 7 loss to Jessica Pegula at the US Open. The Romanian had been sidelined by calf problems and had not competed in the Asian leg of the tour before this event, according to gsp.ro.

Wuhan is the final WTA 1000 tournament of the 2026 season and Cirstea's third appearance in the main draw, following her participation in 2017 and 2025. Her best result at the event in both previous appearances was reaching the second round.

Guo has recorded notable results in singles during 2026, reaching the final of the WTA 125 tournament in Midland and the semifinals of another WTA 125 event in Huzhou. Her most recent appearance before Wuhan ended in a first-round elimination at Suzhou, according to flashscore.ro.

If Cirstea advances, she will face the winner of the match between Kimberly Birrell and Katie Volynets for a place in the third round. The Romanian's remaining planned schedule includes the WTA 500 tournament in Ningbo from October 19-25, the Tokyo event from October 26 to November 1, and the WTA 250 tournament in Hong Kong from November 2-8.

Cirstea enters the closing stretch of the season after significant achievements in 2026. According to flashscore.ro, she won the fourth WTA title of her career at the Transylvania Open in Cluj-Napoca and recorded her first victory over a world No. 1 player by defeating Aryna Sabalenka in the third round in Rome. Those results helped her break into the WTA Top 20 and reach a career-high ranking of No. 15 before she settled at No. 16.

Cirstea announced at the end of 2025 that she intended to retire after the 2026 season, according to gsp.ro. Whether she will maintain that decision at the end of the year remains uncertain.