Bogdan defeats Begu in all-Romanian final to win Iasi 125 title

No.2 seed and defending champion Ana Bogdan triumphed in an all-Romanian final on home soil on Sunday, easing past No.1 seed Irina-Camelia Begu 6-2, 6-3 to claim the WTA 125 BCR Iasi Open title for the second straight year.

In the clash between compatriots, Bogdan took 1 hour and 24 minutes to retain her title. Bogdan improves to 2-1 in WTA 125 finals throughout her career, and now leads Begu 2-0 in their head-to-head.

Bogdan took charge of proceedings by winning 62 percent of points returning the Begu first service (20 of 32), leading to a 6-for-8 break point conversion rate.

Bogdan earned love service breaks at both 1-1 and 3-1, then extended her lead to 5-1 with an error-forcing backhand. Begu ended Bogdan’s four-game winning streak by firing a forehand to hold for 5-2, but an unreturnable serve on set point in the following game gave Bogdan the one-set lead.

In the second set, Bogdan took command by using aggressive play, including a reflex volley winner at 0-15, to break at love for 4-3. Bogdan gritted through a tough hold to consolidate for 5-3, then broke Begu one final time, wrapping up the match after a long miscue by the top seed.

This was World No.49 Bogdan's first event since she reached the third round at Wimbledon, where she came tantalizingly close to making a Grand Slam Round of 16 for the first time before falling to Lesia Tsurenko in the longest women's tiebreak in Grand Slam history.

Earlier on Sunday, an all-Slovenian duo upset a Romanian pair in the BCR Iasi Open doubles final. Unseeded Veronika Erjavec and Dalila Jakupovic defeated No.1 seeds Irina Bara and Monica Niculescu 6-4, 6-4 to capture the title.

Erjavec and Jakupovic needed 1 hour and 20 minutes to topple the top seeds, converting six of their seven break points in the match. The Slovenes were unable to serve out the match at 5-3, where they held two championship points, but they broke serve in the next game to prevail.

This is the third WTA 125 doubles title for Jakupovic, who also won 2018 Anning (with Irina Khromacheva) and 2022 Makarska (with Tena Lukas). This is Erjavec's first WTA 125 doubles final and title of her career.