Sports Flash

The latest from women's tennis and football

Eugen Nasta, 06.06.2024, 13:45

Gabriela Ruse and Marta Kostyuk secured a no-play qualification in the semis as part of the women’s doubles at Roland Garros. In the quarter finals, the all-Russian pair made of Mirra Andreeva and Vera Zvonareva pulled out of competition, since Andreeva secured a qualification to the women’s singles semi-finals, defeating WTA 2nd-placed, Aryna Sabalenka of the Belarus, 6-7, 6-4, 6-4, so the Romanian-Ukrainian pair took advantage of the current situation.

and Kostyuk have been handed a cheque worth 140,000 Euro and were granted 780 WTA points in the women’s doubles rankings. In the semis, Ruse and Kostyuk go against the 11th-seeded pair Roland Garros, Jasmine Paolini and Sara Errani of Italy. For Ruse and Kostyuk, it will be the second Grand Slam women’s doubles semifinal. We recall Ruse and Kostyuk also played in the semis in the Australian Open, in 2023.

We stay with news from tennis, since Anca Todoni has advanced to the quarterfinals as part of the WTA 125 tournament in Italy’s Bari, an event with 100,000 Euro up for grabs all told. In the round of 16, Todoni defeated US opponent Elvina Kalieva, 6-4, 6-2. We recall Kalieva had defeated Romania’s Irina Bara in the first round. In Caserta, also in Italy, in an ITF tournament with 60,000 USD in prize money, Andreea Mitu has reached the round of 16. In the first round, Mitu defeated Hungary’s Timea Babos, 7-6, 3-6, 6-2.

In Bucharest on Friday, in a match hosted by the Steaua stadium, Romania’s national football team plays a friendly against the Duchy of Liechtenstein. It is the last testing match for head-coach Edward Iordanescu’s trainees ahead of the European Championship in Germany.

In Group E, Romania will be joining Ukraine, Belgium and Slovakia. In Nuernberg on Monday, the match pitting Germany against Ukraine also ended in a blank draw. In Brussels on Wednesday, Belgium secured a 2-nil win in the game against Montenegro, while in Austria, Slovakia trounced San Marino, 4-nil. As part of the upcoming EURO, in Munich, Romania takes on Ukraine on June 17. In Cologne on June 22, Romania plays Belgium, while in Frankfurt, on June 26, Romania takes on Slovakia.