By el Amigo
MANILA — Filipina tennis sensation Alex Eala continued her impressive run at the Mubadala DC Open after defeating world No. 10 and second seed Elina Svitolina, 6-3, 6-4, in the quarterfinals in Washington, D.C.
The victory marked Eala’s second straight win over the Ukrainian star, having also beaten Svitolina by the same scoreline in the Berlin Open quarterfinals earlier this season.
The triumph also gave the 21-year-old Filipina her sixth victory over a Top 10 player this year and secured her third WTA Tour semifinal appearance of the season. Eala, who earlier captured the Lexus Birmingham Open title on the WTA 125 circuit, will next face former world No. 1 Naomi Osaka for a place in the championship match.
Speaking after the victory, Eala expressed admiration for her upcoming opponent.
“Naomi is an accomplished player who has made a tremendous impact both on and off the court. I have great respect for everything she has achieved,” she said.
The opening set featured a series of service breaks, with Eala gaining the upper hand after taking a 3-2 lead. She steadied her game by holding serve before surviving three break points in the eighth game, winning five consecutive points to preserve her advantage.
Eala then broke Svitolina’s serve once more to seal the opening frame in 43 minutes, dominating the return game with a 24-13 edge in return points.
Svitolina grabbed an early break in the second set and moved ahead 2-0, but Eala gradually regained control. She broke serve in the sixth game to level the contest before holding comfortably for a 4-3 lead.
With both players holding serve the rest of the way, Eala applied relentless pressure in the 10th game, earning the decisive break that completed another straight-set victory and booked her place in the semifinals.
elamigo/xf
