ALEX Eala dominated American Kayla Day in their Guadalajara 125 Open semifinal, 6-2, 6-3, early Saturday morning (Manila time) to move on the brink of becomng the first Filipino to win a title on the WTA tour.
The 20-year-old Filipina dispatched the unseeded American in a match that lasted just a little over an hour to reach a WTA final for the first time since June at the Eastbourne Open, where she fell to Maya Joint of Australia.
READ Before the big crowds, Alex Eala always had bro Miko by her side
This time, Eala will face another tough test against a seasoned Hungarian in Panna Udvardy, the world's No. 134 ranked player who holds a 1-0 head-to-head edge after defeating the Filipina earlier this year in Portugal.
Udvardy, 26, beat fellow unseeded player Maria Kozyreva of Russia, 6-3, 6-4, in their own semifinal. Fourth seed Francesca Jones was one of her victims in the earlier rounds.
The final of the $115,000 event is set to be played on Sunday morning (Manila time).
Eala is seeded second here, a late entry after a career-best result in a grand slam with a second-round appearance at the 2025 US Open.
Now he's on the brink of more history.
Eala, who turned pro two years ago, started slowly in Abierto Zapopan, trailing 0-2 against world No. 418 Day. But she quickly regrouped and came charging back from 2-all to sweep the next four games and take the first set.
She then carried her momentum into the second, racing to a 2-0 lead. Though Day leveled at 2-all, Eala steadied herself once again and pulled away to seal the victory.
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