Tenacious C: Sorana Cirstea channels self-belief into career renaissance in Sunshine Swing

WATCH: Cirstea scored her first of two straight wins over Caroline Garcia at the BNP Paribas Open last week.

MIAMI—To watch Sorana Cirstea strike a forehand is to first become aware of her obvious potential, and second to wonder why she has never surpassed a career-high ranking of No. 21.

It is a question Cirstea herself has grappled with over the course of a 15-year career, but one she has never stopped trying to answer.

“I think the belief is in my game,” she explained at the Miami Open on Monday. “I feel I have a good game, an aggressive game, a game that has big weapons that can beat anyone on a good day. I think throughout my career I’ve shown that what I lacked a bit was my consistency, but I think that belief was always in my game.”

Cirstea attracted her earliest converts in the late 2000s when she burst onto the scene alongside contemporaries like Petra Kvitova and Caroline Wozniacki. Months after winning her first WTA title in 2008, she clinched an epic fourth-round the following year over Jelena Jankovic to reach her first Grand Slam quarterfinal at Roland Garros.

What followed for the next decade was a stippling of solid results: a statement run to the 2013 Canadian Open final—earning a trio of Top 10 victories along the way—and three more trips to the second week of major tournaments.

But in Cirstea’s words, the “pieces of the puzzle” were never quite right. From peaking just shy of the Top 20 in 2013, injuries took her down to No. 244 two years later. She’s spent the last few seasons bouncing around between No. 30 and No. 90.

When I was walking on court, I felt I was better than a lot of the girls...And of course, that gives you confidence. Sorana Cirstea

“I didn’t know if I had everything mentally together or maybe things off the court or with the team, but…when I was walking on court, I felt I was better than a lot of the girls,” she explained. “And of course, that gives you confidence.

“That made me keep going and working hard…and now the results are finally paying off.”

That work started in earnest at the end of last year when the 32-year-old was forced off tour following the US Open to treat an injured shoulder. At the same time, she brought on 2002 Australian Open champion Thomas Johansson as her full-time coach. Since retiring, Johansson has worked with the likes of Maria Sakkari and David Goffin before taking on the Romanian over the off-season.

“He told me he’s made all the mistakes in the books, so he’s been trying to teach me not to make those mistakes as someone who went through those things,” she said. “It’s very nice because he’s been at that level and even bigger. It’s nice to see how someone handles the big moments and for someone to teach you that. For me, I’m very grateful to him.”

The partnership initially yielded just two main-draw victories in her first six outings, but Cirstea was content to bide her time, steadied by an unwavering sense of self.

“I felt I was already playing good in Australia, and week to week I felt my game was there, so I just said, ‘Ok, I have to keep working, keep believing in the process and at some point, the results will come.’”

Sunshine indeed came after the rain for Cirstea, who has become the feel-good story of Indian Wells and Miami with back-to-back upsets of No. 5 seed Caroline Garcia to make consecutive quarterfinal appearances.

She is yet to drop a set in Miami, in an “automatic” mode and utterly unmoved by the distractions that can make it a stark contrast from the so-hashtagged #TennisParadise in Palm Desert.

“I have done anything other than the hotel and site!” she exclaimed with sheepish pride. “I’m here to do my job and I’ve been in Miami so many times by now, that I’ve seen a bit through the years, so I won’t complain about that. I’m happy to be busy with my tennis.”

At her best, Cirstea can make tennis look quite easy with a formidable combination of serve and forehand—not entirely dissimilar to Garcia, who took that formula all the way to a WTA Finals title last fall.

As the women’s field coalesces around consistent forces like Iga Swiatek, Aryna Sabalenka, and Elena Rybakina, Cirstea feels she can be very much factor into that conversation.

I’ve been in Miami so many times by now, that I’ve seen a bit through the years...I’m happy to be busy with my tennis. Sorana Cirstea

“I think at the moment, we have a great Top 3 in my mind with Swiatek, Rybakina, and Sabalenka. They are playing outstanding, all three of them. It’s nice to see again a bit of those kinds of match-ups week to week. They’ve definitely been taking tennis to a different level this year.

“There are a lot of great girls that I look up to, even ones who are younger than me… and I think I can learn a little bit from everyone.”

Her first test of that hypothesis will come against Sabalenka in the quarterfinals on Wednesday, but Cirstea is making it clear that she hasn’t come this far to only come this far.

“I’ve been winning a lot of matches this American swing,” she smiled. “I have the confidence in how I can play, and every time I step on the court I try to give my best. I have the belief I can win, no matter who I play.”

A player who always believed she was destined for greatness, Cirstea is about to see just how great she can be.