OFF to a strong start in her Asian swing, Alex Eala, the lone Top 100 player in the WTA 125 Jingshan Open in China, will next face Japan’s Mei Yamaguchi in the Round of 16.
The 20-year-old Filipino came off a gritty victory over Aliona Falei of Belarus, pulling through an extended straight-setter, 6-3, 7-5, after calling a medical timeout midway through the second in a match that lasted close to two hours.
READ: Alex Eala off to a flyer in Jingshan after sweeping Aliona Falei
Eala, the tournament’s top seed, now draws WTA No. 268 Yamaguchi, who earlier downed Hong Kong’s Hong Yi Cody Wong, 6-4, 6-1, in the Round of 32.
Their match is set for Thursday, 2:30 a.m. (Manila time).
Currently ranked 58th in the world, Eala leads the field ahead of second seed Talia Gibson, No. 131, and third seed Lulu Sun of New Zealand, No. 146.
She is chasing her second WTA crown after clinching her maiden title at the Guadalajara 125 in Mexico earlier this month.
Her most recent campaign ended in the WTA 250 São Paulo quarterfinals, where she fell to fellow Southeast Asian Janice Tjen.
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