Backlash for Cirstea after sharing endorsement of outdated views: "Make men masculine again, make women feminine again."

Sorana Cirstea has come under fire for sharing 'outdated' views on gender via social media.

33-year-old tennis player Cirstea is facing a backlash after sharing a post to her Instagram story that has led some fans to accuse her of sexism and transphobia.

The incident comes just a couple of days before Cirstea is set to begin her run at Wimbledon, after a mixed season so far.

The post called for traditional concepts of masculinity and femininity to be restored, and ignored any other gender identities, such as non-binary or gender fluid, reading:

"Make men masculine again. Make women feminine again. Make children innocent again."

The Romanian has been as high as world No. 21 in the WTA rankings back in 2013, and currently sits at No. 37. This season has brought some highs, including defeating fifth seed Caroline Garcia to reach the quarterfinal of the BNP Paribas Open, before defeating Garcia again at the Miami Open, where the latter was the fourth seed.

Most notably, though, she defeated current world No. 2 Aryna Sabalenka in the semi-finals at Miami, before going on to win the Catalonia Open.

However, Cirstea also went out early in her most recent competition, the Viking International Eastbourne, where she lost to Ana Bogdan 3-6, 6-2, 3-6 in the round of 32. Now, she will also have to go into the only grasscourt major with this new controversy hanging over her.

Many tennis fans have taken to social media to express their anger and disappointment at Cirstea's decision to share the post. Some asked if she was homophobic, whilst others have called her views 'disgusting' and 'outdated'.

Meanwhile, one Twitter user, David Kane, analyzed the situation in more detail, saying,

"The irony, of course, is that the maker of meme [that Cirstea re-posted] would likely question Cirstea’s femininity — being a muscular woman athlete who deigns to pursue a career outside the home and all. Wild how often transphobia goes hand in hand with internalized misogyny."

On the other hand, there were those who seemed to somewhat defend Cirstea, with one Twitter user saying, "You want your opinion to be respected. Respect hers. We don't all have to be on the same page." Meanwhile, another posted that Cirstea 'has a right to her thoughts.'

This isn't the first time that Cirstea has been criticised for her views on gender-related issues. In 2017, she defended former Romanian tennis player Ilie Nastase after he made sexist comments, including allegedly referring to former British players Johanna Konta and Anne Keothavong as f***ing b***es.

Cirstea has not commented on the most recent situation. She will face Tatjana Maria in the first round of Wimbledon tomorrow, July 4, at 2 pm CET.