FILIPINO tennis ace Alexandra “Alex” Eala stunned World No. 8 Jasmine Paolini of Italy, 6-1, 7-6 (5), to enter the third round (round of 16) of the Dubai Tennis Championships in the United Arab Emirates early Wednesday in Manila.
World No. 47 Eala unleashed a dominating first set performance with strong service game and then dug deep in the second frame tiebreak to defeat the 2024 tournament champ.
This is Eala’s third victory against a top 10 player after Madison Keys and Iga Swiatek at the Miami Open last year.
Eala seeks a quarterfinals berth and a payback win against Romanian Sorana Cirstea in round of 16 on Thursday midnight in Manila.
Eala fell to No. 32 Cirstea in their first encounter at the 2024 Madrid Open round of 64, 3-6, 7-6(6), 4-6.
The 35-year-old Cirstea ousted No. 14 Linda Noskova, 6-1, 6-4, in the second round.
Eala said the loud and supportive Filipino crowd gave her a much-needed extra push in her upset win against Paolini.
“In the tiebreak, I was trying everything to keep myself in check,” said Eala in the post-match court interview at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Stadium, which turned to another de facto home court for the Filipino netter.
“In the change of ends, I was thinking this stadium is full of Filipinos. I thought about how many of them are probably praying for me to win. I really have to give everything I got.”
Those prayers were certainly answered as Eala denied Paolini’s third-set bid despite being unable to convert three match points in the ninth game of the second frame.
Eala even trailed at 5-6 but saved two set points to push the second frame into a tiebreaker, where she proved steadier as she ended the match with a 3-1 run capped by a forehand winner.
“All the emotions are coming. The tension was so high, especially during the 2nd set. I’m really happy to have gotten through,” said Eala.
“She’s a great opponent, obviously being top 10 and a former champion here, so to be able to compete with her at this level is a great achievement for me.”
Meanwhile, Eala climbed from 47th to 38th at the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) live rankings.
Eala, who dropped from career-high 40th to 47th at the latest WTA official rankings last Monday, gained 120 ranking points for reaching the round of 16 (third round).
The live rankings showed 110 net gain only, which likely means she had 10 points in the same tournament week or day last year.
Those 10 points have already dropped off and been replaced by 120, resulting in a net gain of 110 for a total of 1337 points for Eala.
Eala could pad her live ranking more if she defeats Cirstea.
A win would have Eala upgrading her 120 points to 215 on top of a quarterfinals berth.