BLITZING into the semifinals of the WTA 125 Lexus Birmingham Open, Alex Eala overpowered Southeast Asian rival Mananchaya Sawangkaew, 6-3, 6-2, early Saturday morning, Manila time.
The Filipina world No. 37 and tournament top seed needed just one hour and 18 minutes to dispatch the Thai rising star, ranked No. 173 in the world, to continue her first grass-court campaign of the season in Great Britain.
Eala weathered a grueling opening game that lasted 15 minutes and stretched to nine deuces before finally breaking through for a 1-0 lead, setting the tone for the match.
From there, the Filipina dictated the pace and surged to a commanding 5-1 advantage in the first set before Sawangkaew managed to trim the gap, 6-3.
The Thai carried momentum into the second set and briefly led 2-1, but Eala quickly regained control with five of the next six games, closing out the straight-set semifinal berth.
Birmingham Classic is Eala’s 15th tournament for the year following runs in hard-court and clay that ended in a first-round exit at French Open last week.
Eala will next face no. 132 Rebeka Masarova of Switzerland in the semifinal.
Last September 2025, she secured her maiden title at the 125 Guadalajara in Mexico.
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