MANILA, Philippines — Alex Eala of the Philippines and tennis legend Venus Williams of the United States bowed to the formidable duo of Tereza Mihalikova of Slovakia and Olivia Nicholls of Great Britain, 6-3, 6-2 , in the quarterfinals of the 2026 Bad Homburg Open in Germany on Thursday night (Manila time).
Eala and Williams, who paired for the first time, reached the round of 16 after defeating the American-Australian duo of Catherine Harrison and Alexandra Osborne, 6-3, 6-4, on Wednesday. However, they were overwhelmed by long-time doubles tandem of Mihalikova and Nicholls.
In the first frame, Eala and Williams tied the score at 3-3, before Mihalikova and Nicholls pulled away for a 6-3 triumph.
Mihalikova and Nicholls continued their onslaught as they led at 5-1 in the second set. Eala and Williams claimed the next game but eventually succumbed to the more cohesive tandem who orchestrated more cut shots and quick hits in the match.
Nicholls and Mihalikova had a better second serve percentage of 75 percent compared to the 57 percent of Eala and Williams.
Eala also bowed to the same duo in the Abu Dhabi semifinals early this year with Janice Tjen as her partner.
