It has been said that even one ardent fan in a crowd of thousands can change the tone of a match. Those in attendance for Thursday’s quarterfinal between top seed Simona Halep and No. 6 Ekaterina Makarova can hardly be credited for making everything better – the tennis itself was nigh unwatchable for large swaths of the match – but one such fan did make the viewing experience more entertaining.

The rematch of one of this year’s Australian Open quarterfinal encounters began with a tight opening set – one which Halep, who had yet to beat a player ranked within the world’s Top 45 in 2015, managed to clinch, 6-3. From there, the comparisons to Clijsters were never more apt. In spite of her clean technique, Halep seems to share the Belgian’s propensity for needlessly dirtying the stat sheet, slapping 17 errors to lose the second set, 6-1.

As the final set got underway, the players took a back seat to a far more dynamic presence on Dubai’s Centre Court:

That Halep fan in the crowd is insane hahaha —

Abel (@ohitsabel) February 19, 2015

That Halep fan 😂😂😂 —

Eggy (@TheBoiledEgg) February 19, 2015

I am actually getting worried for this #Halep fan. —

Tatiana (@euphoriette) February 19, 2015

Who might this fan be, you ask? Her identity remains a mystery, but she quickly earned a spot in the hearts of fans watching at home – along with the camera operator, who began cutting to her after almost every point.

Sometimes she was up:

La super fan de Halep en Dubai: http://t.co/H4EnJiVvan —

WTA En Español (@wtaenespanol) February 19, 2015

Other times – like when Halep failed to convert one of 19 she’d earned throughout the match – she was down:

When the World No. 4 earned a decisive break at 5-3, she could hardly contain herself:

As Makarova clawed back – winning eight of nine points to level the set at 5-5 – she was in despair:

Bet this Halep fan wishes she was a Sharapova fan.. http://t.co/MKGWVBGSuU —

Meera (@Meera8r) February 19, 2015

Halep went on to hold at love and earn match points, leaving her biggest supporter cautiously optimistic:

SIMONA HALEP'S BEST FAN! 😂😂😂😄😄 Poor woman. Call an ambulance for her! #dead 😄😆 http://t.co/9pmd5QK3VD —

RFan (@GameSetMatch_RF) February 19, 2015

Though the Russian would save four, the match came to an end – throwing her into utter euphoria…

…not before one last false alarm, of course:

Halep next plays Caroline Wozniacki for a spot in the final; the Romanian beat the No. 3 seed at the start of her rise to relevance in 2013, on the Dane’s beloved New Haven hard courts. Perhaps more exciting than the renewed rivalry is the guarantee that, should Halep’s No. 1 fan return for the semifinals, we’re all in for another wild ride.

@tjc05 @DKTNNS @vrcsports and under no circumstances are you allowed to stop clapping http://t.co/0OK3qbdxVW —

Roo (@roobynVC) February 20, 2015

UPDATE: TTI has learned that the Halep fan is named Cristina, who came from Bucharest to watch Halep play in Dubai. Cristina, 39, returned Friday night to see Halep recover from a set down to up-end Caroline Wozniacki, 2-6, 6-1, 6-1. As expected, Cristina was jazzed about it:

THE GAME IS OVER!LET'S CELEBRATE WITH THE BEST FAN EVER! @simona_halep will play the final of #DDFTennis Cristina 🙂 http://t.co/eO1fXXpTEm —

Cristi Cristian (@Carnival6794) February 20, 2015