# Raluca Olaru

Ioana Raluca Olaru (born 3 March 1989) is a Romanian former professional tennis player. The winner of eleven singles and fifteen doubles titles on the ITF Women's Circuit, Olaru reached one WTA Tour singles final, at the 2009 Gastein Ladies, losing to Andrea Petkovic, in straight sets. She also won eleven doubles titles on WTA Tour tournaments.
Olaru was a successful junior player. She was the runner–up in both junior singles and doubles at the 2005 French Open, and captured the 2006 US Open doubles title along with Mihaela Buzărnescu. Her best professional Grand Slam result has been the third round of the 2007 French Open, when she defeated the 30th seed Julia Vakulenko, in straight sets, and lost to eventual runner–up, the seventh seed Ana Ivanovic. Olaru reached her highest singles ranking, world No. 53, on 27 July 2009, and her best doubles ranking, No. 30, on 31 January 2022.
Olaru announced her retirement from tennis in June 2024.

## Personal life

Ioana Raluca Olaru resides in her hometown Bucharest. Her parents, Adrian and Doina, run a convenience store together. Her sister Cristina is 16 years older than Olaru, and lives in London. Olaru began playing tennis aged seven, and cites Kim Clijsters, Martina Navratilova and Roger Federer as her role models. She graduated from school in 2007, and is fluent in English, Spanish and Romanian.

## Tennis career

Raluca started her 2017 season at Shenzhen Open where she reached the final with Olga Savchuk, but they lost 1–6, 5–7 to Peng Shuai and Andrea Hlaváčková. The following week, Olaru with Olga Savchuk won the doubles title at the Hobart International, it was her sixth WTA Tour doubles title.

## Playing style

Olaru considers being a fighter as her biggest asset. She cites clay as her favourite surface and backhand down the line as favourite shot, but she can play well on all surfaces and she likes mixing her game with drop shots. Olaru is currently coached by Adrian Gavrila, Adrian Cruciat and Artemon Apostu Efremov.

## Performance timelines

Key :
| W | F | SF | QF | #R | RR | Q# | DNQ | A | NH |
Only main-draw results in WTA Tour, Grand Slam tournaments, Fed Cup/Billie Jean King Cup and Olympic Games are included in win–loss records.

### Singles

| Tournament | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2022 | SR | W–L |
| Grand Slam tournaments ||||||||||||
| Australian Open | A | 1R | Q2 | 1R | Q2 | A | Q1 | A | 0 / 2 | 0–2 |
| French Open | 3R | 1R | 1R | 1R | Q1 | A | Q1 | A | 0 / 4 | 2–4 |
| Wimbledon | A | 1R | 2R | 2R | Q1 | A | Q1 | A | 0 / 3 | 2–3 |
| US Open | 2R | 2R | 1R | Q1 | A | A | A | | 0 / 3 | 2–3 |
| Win–loss | 3–2 | 1–4 | 1–4 | 1–2 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0 / 12 | 6–12 |

### Doubles

| Tournament | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | SR | W–L | Win% |
| Grand Slam tournaments ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Australian Open | A | A | A | 1R | A | 2R | 1R | A | A | 2R | 1R | 2R | 2R | 2R | 1R | 1R | 2R | 2R | 0 / 12 | 7–12 | 37% |
| French Open | A | A | A | 1R | A | 1R | A | A | A | 1R | 1R | 1R | QF | 1R | 1R | 1R | 2R | 1R | 0 / 11 | 4–11 | 27% |
| Wimbledon | A | A | A | A | Q1 | A | A | A | 2R | 1R | 1R | 1R | 1R | 1R | 1R | NH | 3R | 3R | 0 / 9 | 5–9 | 36% |
| US Open | A | A | A | A | 1R | A | A | A | A | 1R | 3R | 1R | 1R | 2R | 2R | 1R | 3R | 1R | 0 / 10 | 6–10 | 38% |
| Win–loss | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–2 | 0–1 | 1–2 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 1–4 | 2–4 | 1–4 | 4–4 | 2–4 | 1–4 | 0–3 | 4–3 | 3–4 | 0 / 42 | 22–42 | 34% |
| National representation ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Summer Olympics | NH | NH | NH | A | NH | NH | NH | A | NH | NH | NH | 2R | NH | NH | NH | NH | 2R | | 2 / 2 | 2–2 | 50% |
| WTA 1000 ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Qatar / Dubai Open | NMS | NMS | NMS | A | A | A | A | A | A | 1R | A | 1R | 2R | A | QF | A | A | A | 0 / 4 | 3–4 | 43% |
| Indian Wells Open | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | 2R | 1R | 1R | 1R | QF | NH | 1R | 1R | 0 / 7 | 3–7 | 30% |
| Miami Open | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | 1R | 1R | 1R | QF | NH | 1R | 1R | 0 / 6 | 2–6 | 25% |
| Madrid Open | NH | NH | NH | NH | A | A | A | A | A | A | 2R | 2R | A | A | 1R | NH | 2R | A | 0 / 4 | 2–4 | 33% |
| Italian Open | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | 1R | A | A | A | 1R | F | 1R | A | 0 / 4 | 4–4 | 50% |
| Canadian Open | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | QF | A | A | A | 2R | NH | A | A | 0 / 2 | 3–1 | 75% |
| Cincinnati Open | NMS | NMS | NMS | NMS | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | 1R | QF | 2R | 1R | A | 1R | A | 0 / 5 | 3–5 | 38% |
| Pan Pacific / Wuhan Open | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | 1R | 1R | A | 1R | A | 2R | NH | NH | NH | 0 / 4 | 1–4 | 20% |
| China Open | NMS | NMS | NMS | NMS | NMS | NMS | A | A | A | 2R | 1R | A | 2R | 1R | 1R | NH | NH | NH | 0 / 5 | 2–5 | 29% |
| Career statistics ||||||||||||||||||||||
| | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | SR | W–L | Win% |
| Tournaments | 1 | 1 | 2 | 6 | 11 | 10 | 6 | 1 | 9 | 22 | 24 | 23 | 23 | 21 | 22 | 10 | 20 | 12 | Career total: 224 | Career total: 224 | Career total: 224 |
| Titles | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Career total: | Career total: | Career total: |
| Finals | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | Career total: | Career total: | Career total: |
| Overall win-loss | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Year-end ranking | | | | | | | | | 73 | 55 | 54 | 74 | 36 | 44 | 48 | 43 | 36 | 155 | | | |

### Mixed doubles

| Tournament | 2015 | 2006 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | SR | W–L |
| Australian Open | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | 0 / 0 | 0–0 |
| French Open | A | A | A | A | 2R | NH | A | 0 / 1 | 1–1 |
| Wimbledon | 3R | 1R | 2R | 2R | QF | NH | A | 0 / 5 | 6–5 |
| US Open | A | A | 2R | QF | 2R | NH | A | 0 / 3 | 4–3 |
| Win–loss | 2–1 | 0–1 | 2–2 | 3–2 | 4–3 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0 / 9 | 11–9 |

## Significant finals
### Premier-Mandatory/Premier-5 tournaments
#### Doubles: 1 (runner-up)

| Result | Year | Tournament | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |
| Loss | 2020 | Italian Open | Clay | Anna-Lena Friedsam | Hsieh Su-wei Barbora Strýcová | 2–6, 2–6 |

## WTA Tour finals
### Singles: 1 (runner-up)

| Result | W–L | Date | Tournament | Tier | Surface | Opponent | Score |
| Loss | 0–1 | Jul 2009 | Gastein Ladies, Austria | International | Clay | Andrea Petkovic | 2–6, 3–6 |

### Doubles: 24 (11 titles, 13 runner-ups)

* Legend
* Grand Slam
* WTA 1000 (0–1)
* WTA 500 (1–2)
* WTA 250 (10–10)
* Finals by surface
* Hard (7–5)
* Clay (4–7)
* Grass (0–1)
* Carpet (0–0)
| Result | W–L | Date | Tournament | Tier | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |
| Loss | 0–1 | Jul 2008 | Budapest Grand Prix, Hungary | Tier III | Clay | Vanessa Henke | Alizé Cornet Janette Husárová | 7–6$^{(7–5)}$, 1–6, [6–10] |
| Win | 1–1 | Oct 2008 | Tashkent Open, Uzbekistan | Tier IV | Hard | Olga Savchuk | Nina Bratchikova Kathrin Wörle | 5–7, 7–5, [10–7] |
| Win | 2–1 | Feb 2011 | Mexican Open, Mexico | International | Hard | Mariya Koryttseva | Arantxa Parra Santonja Lourdes Domínguez Lino | 5–7, 7–5, [10–7] |
| Loss | 2–2 | Apr 2013 | Katowice Open, Poland | International | Clay (i) | Valeria Solovyeva | Lara Arruabarrena Lourdes Domínguez Lino | 4–6, 5–7 |
| Win | 3–2 | Jun 2013 | Nuremberg Cup, Germany | International | Clay | Valeria Solovyeva | Anna-Lena Grönefeld Květa Peschke | 2–6, 7–6$^{(7–3)}$, [11–9] |
| Loss | 3–3 | May 2014 | Nuremberg Cup, Germany | International | Clay | Shahar Pe'er | Michaëlla Krajicek Karolína Plíšková | 0–6, 6–4, [6–10] |
| Loss | 3–4 | Jul 2014 | Baku Cup, Azerbaijan | International | Hard | Shahar Pe'er | Alexandra Panova Heather Watson | 2–6, 6–7$^{(3–7)}$ |
| Win | 4–4 | Oct 2014 | Linz Open, Austria | International | Hard (i) | Anna Tatishvili | Annika Beck Caroline Garcia | 6–2, 6–1 |
| Loss | 4–5 | May 2015 | Nuremberg Cup, Germany | International | Clay | Lara Arruabarrena | Chan Hao-ching Anabel Medina Garrigues | 4–6, 6–7$^{(5–7)}$ |
| Loss | 4–6 | Apr 2016 | Rabat Grand Prix, Morocco | International | Clay | Tatjana Maria | Xenia Knoll Aleksandra Krunić | 3–6, 0–6 |
| Win | 5–6 | Oct 2016 | Tashkent Open, Uzbekistan (2) | International | Hard | İpek Soylu | Demi Schuurs Renata Voráčová | 7–5, 6–3 |
| Loss | 5–7 | Jan 2017 | Shenzhen Open, China | International | Hard | Olga Savchuk | Andrea Hlaváčková Peng Shuai | 1–6, 5–7 |
| Win | 6–7 | Jan 2017 | Hobart International, Australia | International | Hard | Olga Savchuk | Gabriela Dabrowski Yang Zhaoxuan | 0–6, 6–4, [10–5] |
| Win | 7–7 | Jul 2017 | Bucharest Open, Romania | International | Clay | Irina-Camelia Begu | Elise Mertens Demi Schuurs | 6–3, 6–3 |
| Win | 8–7 | May 2018 | Rabat Grand Prix, Morocco | International | Clay | Anna Blinkova | Georgina García Pérez Fanny Stollár | 6–4, 6–4 |
| Win | 9–7 | May 2018 | Strasbourg International, France | International | Clay | Mihaela Buzărnescu | Nadiia Kichenok Anastasia Rodionova | 7–5, 7–5 |
| Loss | 9–8 | Sep 2018 | Tashkent Open, Uzbekistan | International | Hard | Irina-Camelia Begu | Olga Danilović Tamara Zidanšek | 5–7, 3–6 |
| Loss | 9–9 | Oct 2018 | Kremlin Cup, Russia | Premier | Hard (i) | Darija Jurak | Alexandra Panova Laura Siegemund | 2–6, 6–7$^{(2–7)}$ |
| Loss | 9–10 | Aug 2020 | Prague Open, Czech Republic | International | Clay | Monica Niculescu | Lucie Hradecká Kristýna Plíšková | 2–6, 2–6 |
| Loss | 9–11 | Sep 2020 | Italian Open, Italy | Premier 5 | Clay | Anna-Lena Friedsam | Hsieh Su-wei Barbora Strýcová | 2–6, 2–6 |
| Win | 10–11 | Mar 2021 | St. Petersburg Trophy, Russia | WTA 500 | Hard (i) | Nadiia Kichenok | Kaitlyn Christian Sabrina Santamaria | 2–6, 6–3, [10–8] |
| Loss | 10–12 | Jun 2021 | Bad Homburg Open, Germany | WTA 250 | Grass | Nadiia Kichenok | Darija Jurak Andreja Klepač | 3–6, 1–6 |
| Win | 11–12 | Aug 2021 | Chicago Open, United States | WTA 250 | Hard | Nadiia Kichenok | Lyudmyla Kichenok Makoto Ninomiya | 7–6$^{(8–6)}$, 5–7, [10–8] |
| Loss | 11–13 | Oct 2021 | Kremlin Cup, Russia | WTA 500 | Hard (i) | Nadiia Kichenok | Jeļena Ostapenko Kateřina Siniaková | 2–6, 6–4, [8–10] |

## WTA Challenger finals
### Doubles: 1 (runner-up)

| Result | W–L | Date | Tournament | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |
| Loss | 0–1 | May 2016 | Bol Ladies Open, Croatia | Clay | İpek Soylu | Xenia Knoll Petra Martić | 3–6, 2–6 |

## ITF Circuit finals

* Legend
* $100,000 tournaments
* $75,000 tournaments
* $50,000 tournaments
* $25,000 tournaments
* $10,000 tournaments

### Singles: 18 (11 titles, 7 runner–ups)

| Result | W–L | Date | Tournament | Tier | Surface | Opponent | Score |
| Loss | 0–1 | Aug 2004 | ITF Iași, Romania | 10,000 | Clay | Monica Niculescu | 6–7, 0–6 |
| Win | 1–1 | Apr 2005 | ITF Herceg Novi, Serbia | 10,000 | Clay | Miljana Adanko | 7–5, 7–6$^{(2)}$ |
| Win | 2–1 | Jul 2005 | ITF Bucharest, Romania | 10,000 | Clay | Anna Bastrikova | 6–3, 6–2 |
| Win | 3–1 | Aug 2005 | ITF Bucharest, Romania | 10,000 | Clay | Mădălina Gojnea | 7–6$^{(3)}$, 7–5 |
| Win | 4–1 | May 2006 | ITF Bucharest, Romania | 10,000 | Clay | Sorana Cîrstea | 1–6, 6–4, 6–1 |
| Win | 5–1 | May 2006 | ITF Rabat, Morocco | 10,000 | Clay | Samia Medjahdi | 6–2, 2–6, 7–5 |
| Loss | 5–2 | Jul 2006 | ITF Mont-de-Marsan, France | 25,000 | Clay | Nina Bratchikova | 4–6, 6–4, 0–6 |
| Win | 6–2 | Nov 2006 | ITF Toronto, Canada | 25,000 | Hard(i) | Carly Gullickson | 6–3, 6–1 |
| Win | 7–2 | Apr 2007 | ITF Torrent, Spain | 50,000 | Clay | Andrea Petkovic | 6–4, 5–7, 6–4 |
| Loss | 7–3 | Apr 2007 | ITF Catania, Italy | 25,000 | Clay | Darya Kustova | 3–6, 6–2, 3–6 |
| Win | 8–3 | Jul 2008 | Contrexéville Open, France | 50,000 | Clay | Stéphanie Foretz | 6–4, 6–2 |
| Win | 9–3 | Jun 2009 | Open de Marseille, France | 100,000 | Clay | Maša Zec Peškirič | 6–7$^{(4)}$, 7–5, 6–4 |
| Win | 10–3 | Jul 2011 | ITF Bad Saulgau, Germany | 25,000 | Clay | Tatjana Maria | 6–3, 3–6, 7–5 |
| Loss | 10–4 | Apr 2012 | ITF Pomezia, Italy | 10,000 | Clay | Aliaksandra Sasnovich | 6–0, 1–6, 1–6 |
| Loss | 10–5 | Oct 2012 | ITF Brasília, Brazil | 25,000 | Clay | Timea Bacsinszky | 5–7, 2–6 |
| Loss | 10–6 | Nov 2012 | ITF Asunción, Paraguay | 25,000 | Clay | Verónica Cepede Royg | 7–5, 6–7$^{(7)}$, 2–6 |
| Loss | 10–7 | Jan 2013 | ITF Eilat, İsrael | 10,000 | Hard | Alla Kudryavtseva | 7–6$^{(4)}$, 3–6, 2–6 |
| Win | 11–7 | Mar 2013 | ITF Antalya, Turkey | 10,000 | Clay | Jovana Jakšić | 6–3, 7–5 |

### Doubles: 31 (15 titles, 16 runner–ups)

| Result | W–L | Date | Tournament | Tier | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |
| Loss | 0–1 | Jun 2004 | ITF Brașov, Romania | 10,000 | Clay | Lenore Lăzăroiu | Corina Corduneanu Alexandra Iacob | 4–6, 5–7 |
| Loss | 0–2 | Aug 2004 | ITF Timișoara, Romania | 10,000 | Clay | Lenore Lăzăroiu | Sorana Cîrstea Gabriela Niculescu | 1–6, 6–2, 2–6 |
| Win | 1–2 | Sep 2004 | ITF Cluj-Napoca, Romania | 10,000 | Clay | Corina Corduneanu | Veronika Raimrová Anamaria Sere | 4–6, 6–0, 6–4 |
| Win | 2–2 | Apr 2005 | ITF Herceg Novi, Serbia | 10,000 | Clay | Antonia Xenia Tout | Aleksandra Lukič Patricia Vollmeier | 6–4, 4–1 ret. |
| Win | 3–2 | July 2005 | ITF Arad, Romania | 10,000 | Clay | Corina Corduneanu | Anna Bastrikova Vasilisa Davydova | 6–1, 6–4 |
| Win | 4–2 | Aug 2005 | ITF Bucharest, Romania | 10,000 | Clay | Corina Corduneanu | Bianca Ioana Bonifate Sorana Cîrstea | 6–1, 6–1 |
| Win | 5–2 | Apr 2006 | ITF Makarska, Croatia | 10,000 | Clay | Antonia Xenia Tout | Johanna Larsson Nadja Roma | 6–4, 7–5 |
| Loss | 5–3 | May 2006 | ITF Bucharest, Romania | 10,000 | Clay | Simona Matei | Sorana Cîrstea Gabriela Niculescu | 4–6, 6–0, 6–7$^{(3)}$ |
| Loss | 5–4 | May 2006 | ITF Rabat, Morocco | 10,000 | Clay | María Fernanda Álvarez Terán | Bahia Mouhtassine Émilie Bacquet | w/o |
| Win | 6–4 | July 2006 | ITF Mont-de-Marsan, France | 25,000 | Clay | Margalita Chakhnashvili | Akgul Amanmuradova Nina Bratchikova | 7–5, 1–6, 6–1 |
| Loss | 6–5 | Aug 2006 | Ladies Open Hechingen, Germany | 25,000 | Clay | Kristina Antoniichuk | Eva Fislová Stanislava Hrozenská | 3–6, 7–6$^{(3)}$, 3–6 |
| Loss | 6–6 | Nov 2006 | ITF Toronto, Canada | 25,000 | Hard (i) | Heidi El Tabakh | Angelika Bachmann Hana Šromová | 4–6, 1–6 |
| Win | 7–6 | Sep 2010 | ITF Biella, Italy | 100,000 | Clay | Mariya Koryttseva | Andreja Klepač Aurélie Védy | 7–5, 6–4 |
| Loss | 7–7 | Sep 2010 | Open de Saint Malo, France | 100,000 | Clay | Mariya Koryttseva | Petra Cetkovská Lucie Hradecká | 4–6, 2–6 |
| Loss | 7–8 | Sep 2011 | Sofia Cup, Bulgaria | 100,000 | Clay | Alexandra Cadanțu | Nina Bratchikova Darija Jurak | 4–6, 5–7 |
| Win | 8–8 | Jan 2012 | ITF Innisbrook, United States | 25,000 | Clay | Darya Kustova | Gioia Barbieri Nadejda Guskova | 6–3, 6–1 |
| Loss | 8–9 | Feb 2012 | Copa Cali, Colombia | 100,000 | Clay | Alexandra Cadanțu | Karin Knapp Mandy Minella | 4–6, 3–6 |
| Win | 9–9 | Apr 2012 | ITF Civitavecchia, Italy | 25,000 | Clay | Elena Bogdan | Claudia Giovine Marina Shamayko | 6–3, 7–5 |
| Win | 10–9 | Apr 2012 | ITF Tunis, Tunisia | 25,000 | Clay | Elena Bogdan | Inés Ferrer Suárez Richèl Hogenkamp | 6–4, 6–3 |
| Loss | 10–10 | May 2012 | ITF Casablanca, Morocco | 25,000 | Clay | Elena Bogdan | Olga Savchuk Renata Voráčová | 1–6, 4–6 |
| Loss | 10–11 | Jul 2012 | Open Romania Ladies | 100,000 | Clay | Elena Bogdan | Irina-Camelia Begu Alizé Cornet | 2–6, 0–6 |
| Win | 11–11 | Aug 2012 | ITF Mamaia, Romania | 25,000 | Clay | Elena Bogdan | Danka Kovinić Tadeja Majerič | 7–6$^{(4)}$, 6–3 |
| Loss | 11–12 | Sep 2012 | ITF Sofia, Bulgaria | 25,000 | Clay | Marina Melnikova | Katarzyna Piter Barbara Sobaszkiewicz | 5–7, 1–6 |
| Win | 12–12 | Oct 2012 | ITF Brasília, Brazil | 25,000 | Clay | Elena Bogdan | Timea Bacsinszky Julia Cohen | 6–3, 3–6, [10–8] |
| Win | 13–12 | Nov 2012 | ITF Buenos Aires, Argentina | 25,000 | Clay | Elena Bogdan | María Fernanda Álvarez Terán Maria Fernanda Alves | 1–6, 6–2, [10–7] |
| Win | 14–12 | Jan 2013 | ITF Eilat, Israel | 10,000 | Hard | Alla Kudryavtseva | Ilona Kremen Pemra Özgen | 6–3, 6–3 |
| Loss | 14–13 | Nov 2013 | GB Pro-Series Barnstaple, UK | 75,000 | Hard (i) | Tamira Paszek | Naomi Broady Kristýna Plíšková | 3–6, 6–3, [5–10] |
| Win | 15–13 | Jun 2015 | Ilkley Trophy, UK | 50,000 | Grass | Xu Yifan | An-Sophie Mestach Demi Schuurs | 6–3, 6–4 |
| Loss | 15–14 | Aug 2015 | Vancouver Open, Canada | 100,000 | Hard | Anna Tatishvili | Johanna Konta Maria Sanchez | 6–7$^{(5)}$, 4–6 |
| Loss | 15–15 | Sep 2016 | Neva Cup, Russia | 100,000 | Hard (i) | Alena Tarasova | Maria Marfutina Anna Morgina | 2–6, 3–6 |
| Loss | 15–16 | May 2017 | Open de Cagnes-sur-Mer, France | 100,000 | Clay | Renata Voráčová | Chang Kai-chen Hsieh Su-wei | 5–7, 1–6 |