ALEX Eala will play her first-ever finals match in a Girls Singles Grand Slam.
The Filipina teen tennis sensation trounced Canadian Victoria Mboko, 6-1, 7(7)-6(5), in the semifinals round of the 2022 US Open Girls Singles on early Saturday morning (Philippine time), at the USTA Billie Jean King Tennis Center, New York City.
The victory puts Eala, a two-time Girls Doubles champ, into her first finals appearance in the singles play of the juniors circuit.
She will face tournament second seed Lucie Havlickova of Czech Republic, Juniors World No. 3, in the title round.
This records as her best shot yet in the girls singles grand slam, surpassing her semifinals finish at the 2020 French Open where she lost to Elsa Jacquemot of France.
Strong start, slow finish for Alex Eala in US Open semis
The 17-year-old Pinay netter dominated the Canadian in the first set, limiting her to taking just the third game, 2-1. Eala let up the brakes from there and took four consecutive games, including a perfect game 7, to seal the set at 6-1.
In the following set, however, Mboko scored the first game with an ace before Eala managed to tie, 1-1. Mboko, though, took control, winning the third game with another ace, and scoring the next to go up by two, 3-1.
With long rallies, Eala eventually caught up with a tie at 5-5, then 6-6, forcing a race to seven that Eala seized with Mboko's double fault as the matchpoint.
The game lasted for an hour and 21 minutes.
What awaits Alex Eala at finals
The championship match would be an interesting battle between two former Juniors World No. 2s, with two Grand Slam titles each.
Havlickova, 17, recently won the 2022 French Open Girls Singles and Doubles Grand Slam titles last June, while Eala got her plates in the 2020 Australian Open and 2021 French Open.
Eala, though, has more experience in the pros, and has a higher ranking at WTA no. 297. Havlickova is at WTA no. 577.
They are expected to go head-to-head on Sunday (Philippine time).
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