MANILA – Filipino tennis star Alexandra Eala dethroned defending champion and No. 7 seed Leylah Fernandez, 6-1, 7-6 (2), Friday to reach the WTA 500 Mubadala Open in Washington, USA.
The win avenged Eala’s 1-6, 4-6 loss to the Canadian in the first round of the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix on clay in Stuttgart, Germany last April 14.
“I know that she was playing a little better, and maybe my level dropped a little bit,” said the 21-year-old Eala of her second-set comeback during the post-match interview.
“Those are very tricky moments, when you know your level has dropped and you want to do better, but things for one reason or another just aren’t coming out. I think patience was key there, just trying to work it out, and a strong mentality in terms of trying to find solutions,” added Eala, who also dethroned Iga Swiatek in the Wimbledon third round four weeks ago.
Eala will next face the winner between Ukrainian second seed Elina Svitolina and Uzbek qualifier Polina Kudermetova.
Svitolina had a first-round bye while Kudermetova rallied past Spanish Cristina Busca, 5-7, 7-6 (4), 6-0.
Meanwhile, 2022 champion Liudmila Samsonova marched to the quarters after beating Wang Xinyu 6-2, 6-2.
The tournament has a total of USD1,637,982 in prize money.
The breakdown of ranking points and prize money for each round: Singles: First round: 1 | USD17,440; Second round: 60 | USD24,474; Quarterfinal: 108 | USD47,750; Semifinal: 195 | USD90,900; Finalist: 325 | USD155,000. Champion: 500 | USD252,000. Doubles: First round: 1 | USD9,210; Quarterfinal: 108 | USD15,140; Semifinal: 195 | USD29,490; Finalist: 325 | USD50,790; Champion: 500 | USD83,500. (PNA)
