SORANA CIRSTEA has retired from tennis immediately after her defeat at the Hong Kong Tennis Open.

The world no15 was stunned by Alexandra Shubladze in a one-sided affair despite her opponent being ranked outside the top 100.

Cirstea, 36, had previously admitted that 2026 would be her final year on the pro tennis tour.

She had been excelling on the court, having won a WTA Tour title and made it to the quarter-finals of the French Open.

Her impressive performances had seen the veteran climb up to a career-best no15 in the world rankings.

However, her career came to a bitter end as she was beaten 6-2 6-3 in Hong Kong.

Cirstea arrived at the WTA 250 event as the top seed but was defeated in less than 90 minutes.

This means that unless she chooses to reverse her decision, then the loss will be the final game of her career.

Cirstea has been asked mulitple times throughout the season if she would continue playing or not.

Speaking in May at the Italian Open, she said: “Everyone has been asking me, like, ‘You cannot retire, you cannot retire!’

“And I mean, again, at this moment, my mind is set.

“But we will see what I can achieve this year and again, even if this is my last year.

“I still have a lot of goals and things to improve, and I go every day on the court with a plan.”

Cirstea reached the semi-finals in Italy and even beat then-World no1 Aryna Sabalenka.

That victory saw her become the oldest woman to record a first career win over a reigning No1 in the Open era.

She was unable to reach the final as she was beaten by eventual champion Mirra Andreeva.