Alex Eala defeated Arianne Hartono of the Netherlands, 6-2, 6-2, on early Wednesday (Philippine time) to commence her campaign at the Guadalajara 125 Open in Mexico.
Eala, currently ranked No. 75 in the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) rankings, is the second seed in the tournament. Hartono, 29, is currently ranked No. 187.
The Filipino tennis ace claimed the victory as she pulled away from a 2-all tie in the second set and closed the match after an hour and nine minutes.
In the first set, Eala took an early 3-1 lead before Hartono won the fifth game. However, Eala bounced back and claimed the next three games to take the set.
Eala will face 39-year-old American Varvara Lepchenko next in the Round of 16.
This is Eala’s second tournament since returning from injury, and her first since making history in the US Open, where she became the first Filipino to win a Grand Slam main draw match. However, her run there was halted in the second round by Cristina Bucsa of Spain.
Alex Eala exits US Open after second-round loss to Cristina Bucsa
Alex Eala’s US Open journey came to an end after absorbing a 6-4, 6-3 loss to Cristina Bucsa of Spain. The game was in its second round early Thursday (Philippine time) at Flushing Meadows, New York.
The Filipina ace fought bravely, but the Spanish bet showed poise as she secured the win to advance to the third round. Her deepest run yet in five US Open appearances.
Eala, meanwhile, concluded a historic campaign in which she became the first Filipino to score a Grand Slam main draw victory in the Open era, following her comeback win against Clara Tauson of Denmark in the opening round.
The 20-year-old Eala kept the opening set tight after taking a 4-3 lead, but two consecutive errors in Game 8 allowed the 27-year-old Bucsa to claw back and force a deadlock.
Game 9 saw Eala and Bucsa trade blows through two deuces, but back-to-back errors from the Filipina handed the Spanish the breakthrough to go up 5-4. In the next game, Bucsa’s attack error gave Eala a glimmer of hope. But the Spanish bet steadied herself and punished the Filipino’s miscues to clinch the first set.
Eala committed a total of 11 errors in that opening set alone.
