Lucia Bronzetti maybe didn’t win Cluj-Napoca but she won’t ever forget playing Simona Halep in the former two-time Grand Slam champion’s last career match.
On Sunday, the Italian made a strong start to the Transylvania Open final and won the opening set against No. 1 seed Anastasia Potapova.
But then, failed to keep up with the same level for the rest of the match and the Russian came back to win 4-6 6-1 6-2.
At the start of her Cluj-Napoca run, Bronzetti dismantled home favorite Halep 6-1 6-1.
Lucia Bronzetti© Transylvania Open/Instagram – Fair Use
Moments after the match ended, the Romanian stayed on the court because she had an important announcement to make – she was walking away from pro tennis.
“I will bring this week in my memory forever. I played against Simona in her last match. I feel lucky for this,” Bronzetti said during her speech.
Lucia Bronzetti says she feels lucky to have played Halep in her final match in Cluj:
“I will bring this week in my memory forever. I played against Simona in her last match. I feel lucky for this.” 🥹 pic.twitter.com/BVlYS2DUSK
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) February 9, 2025
A serious injury basically forced Halep to make the retirement decision
After arriving in Cluj-Napoca, the former world No. 1 revealed to reporters that the doctors told her that her knee injury was serious and that the best thing would be to surgically repair it.
But since the surgery would likely sideline the 2019 Wimbledon winner to at least a year or a year and a half – and there were no guarantees that she would be the same player again – she realized that ending her career at 33 was the right thing to do.
“Tonight, I don’t know if it’s with joy or sadness, I think both feelings are trying me but I’m making this decision with my soul,” Halep said when announcing the decision.
“I’ve always been realistic with myself and with my body.
“Where I probably was, it’s very hard to get there and I know what it means to get there. That’s why I wanted to come here today in Cluj to play in front of you and say goodbye.”
Tennis World USA