SHOWING encouraging progress, Alex Eala made a win over Valentina Ryser look like a light workout, 6-1, 6-2, in the Round of 16 of the WTA 125 Lexus Ilkley Open in Great Britain on Thursday night, Manila time.
The victory secured for the WTA No. 77 a spot in the quarterfinals of the grass-court tournament, where she is the top seed.
READ Alex Eala hurdles Lizette Cabrera in Ilkley Open first round
This marks her second consecutive win following a four-match losing streak in her previous four tournaments before the Ilkley Open, including a disappointing maiden campaign in the French Open main draw.
This time, the 20-year old Filipina ace easily dspatched a Swiss opponent ranked No. 230 in the world to reach the Final Eight, where she will face either home bet Emily Appleton or Rebecca Marino.
After getting stretched to her limit by Fil-Aussie Lizette Cabrera in her opening match, Eala started strong against Ryser, breaking twice for a 5-1 lead before served out the set 6-1, capping it off with an ace.
Riding her momentum, Eala surged to a 5-2 lead in the second set after a brief 2-2 deadlock, before overpowering the Swiss to close out the match that only lasted an hour and seven minutes.
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