ALEX Eala will take on world No. 13 Diana Shnaider with a place in the quarterfinas of the WTA500 Ningbo Open at stake.
Eala, 21, ended a run of poor form in emphatic fashion, putting away world No. 32 Diane Parry of France, 6-1, 6-3, in her tournament opener on Monday night.
She now hopes to sustain that momentum in the round-of-16 match Shnaider, the Russia ace who at 22 already has four WTA titles and a 2024 Paris Olympics silver medal in women's doubles to her name.
READ: Alex Eala talks about her goal to 'compartmentalize, prioritize'
Shnaider got through after beating Yulia Putintseva of Kazakhstan, 7-5, 7-6 (7-4), in their first-round duel on Tuesday.
The Russian's win, however, was far from easy as she had to rally from a 5-3 deficit in set two and overcome 49 unforced errors to win the match in two hours and 26 minutes.
This will be the first career faceoff between Eala and the six-seeded Shnaider.
They were supposed to clash in the French Open doubles this , with Eala teaming up with Victoria Mboko and Shnaider paired with Leylah Fernandez.
The Eala-Mboko duo were forced to withdraw.
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