BUCKING a slow start that saw her trail by two games against world No. 349 Lu Jia-jing, Alex Eala bounced back to clinch a 6-4, 6-1 victory and barge into the semifinals of the WTA 125 Jingshan Open in China on Friday.
The tournament’s top seed found her rhythm just in time in the second set, breaking away from 1-1 to take a commanding 5-1 lead avoid a decider in a well-fought quarterfinal that lasted one hour and 17 minutes.
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Eala remains the lone Top 100 player in the WTA 125 field and is looking to dominate the tournament and build mometum in her campaign in the tour's Asian Swing.
She will next face either Lulu Sun of New Zealand, the third seed who breat Russia’s Elena Pridankina, 6-2, 6-4, in the other half of the semifinals.
Currently ranked No. 58 in the world, Eala is chasing her second WTA 125 crown after winning in Guadalajara, Mexico, just two weeks ago.
In the opening set, Eala, despite winning the first game, stumbled to 2-4 before regaining control and rattling off four straight games.
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