Taylor Fritz Eyes Fourth Eastbourne Title In Final vs Brooksby; Eala Makes History
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Top seed Taylor Fritz will face Jenson Brooksby in the Eastbourne Open final. Alexandra Eala made history as the first Filipino to reach a WTA Tour final.
Top seed Taylor Fritz remains on track for a fourth Eastbourne Open title in six years after advancing to the final, where he will face fellow American and lucky loser Jenson Brooksby on Saturday.
Fritz overcame a second-set dip to defeat Spanish sixth seed Alejandro Davidovich Fokina 6-3, 3-6, 6-1, moving a step closer to securing his second grass-court title of the season following his triumph in Stuttgart earlier this month.
While the world No. 5 was widely expected to make the final, Brooksby's journey has been nothing short of remarkable. The 24-year-old entered the tournament as a lucky loser after falling in straight sets to Aleksandar Vukic in qualifying.
On Friday, Brooksby stunned French fourth seed Ugo Humbert 6-7 (7/9), 6-4, 6-4 to become the first lucky loser in tournament history to reach the final.
'I think it's a lot less pressure when you don't expect to be in the main draw and get the opportunity," said Brooksby, currently ranked 149th in the world. 'You just want to make the most of it."
Brooksby captured his first ATP Tour title earlier this year in Houston as a qualifier, saving match points in three of his matches during that run.
Eala Reaches Historic Final for the Philippines
Earlier in the day, Alexandra Eala made history by becoming the first Filipino player to reach a WTA Tour final, defeating Varvara Gracheva 7-5, 2-6, 6-3 at the Eastbourne International.
The match, which lasted over two hours, was a hard-fought contest on the grass courts of Devonshire Park. Eala's composure and persistence paid off as she edged through to the final of this Wimbledon warm-up event.
The 20-year-old will face 19-year-old Australian Maya Joint in Saturday's final. Joint, ranked No. 51 in the world, earned her spot by defeating Russia's Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova 7-5, 6-3.
'It was a challenge for both of us, physically and mentally. She's a really solid player, had some moments where she was really dominating," said Eala. 'The fact that I was able to stay there and wait for my opportunities was a big achievement for me."
Eala's rise has been rapid. Ranked No. 74 in the world, she grabbed headlines earlier this year with a breakout performance at the Miami Open, where she reached the semi-finals after stunning Grand Slam champions Jelena Ostapenko, Madison Keys, and Iga Swiatek.
Eala is scheduled to face defending champion Barbora Krejcikova in the first round at Wimbledon on Centre Court this Tuesday. However, Krejcikova's participation is in doubt after she withdrew from her Eastbourne quarter-final on Thursday due to a thigh injury.
(with AFP inputs)
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Siddarth Sriram
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June 28, 2025, 08:16 IST
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