Tennis-Eala makes history for Philippines by reaching Eastbourne final
EASTBOURNE, England (Reuters) -Alexandra Eala became the first player from the Philippines to reach a WTA Tour final as she beat fellow qualifier Varvara Gracheva 7-5 2-6 6-3 on the Eastbourne grass on Friday.
The 20-year-old left-hander, ranked 74th in the world, edged a tight first set before losing five games in a row in the second as the match appeared to be slipping away.
But she regrouped in the decider and survived a tough seventh game before breaking her French opponent's serve to lead 5-3. She then enjoyed a love service game hold to seal victory.
In Saturday's final she will face either Australia's Maya Joint or Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova.
"I'm super happy because that was a tough match and there were some really tough moments," an emotional Eala, who is based in Mallorca and trains at the Rafa Nadal Academy, said on court.
"It was tough physically and mentally because she is a tough player and also came from qualifying."
Eala's run will not have gone unnoticed by reigning Wimbledon champion Barbora Krejcikova, who has been drawn to play her in the first round at the All England Club next week.
Krejcikova reached the quarter-finals at Eastbourne but withdrew with a thigh injury on Thursday.
(Reporting by Martyn Herman; Editing by Ken Ferris)
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Star
2 hours ago
- The Star
Cricket-Suryavanshi fireworks guide India Under-19s to ODI win over England
(Reuters) -India's 14-year-old Vaibhav Suryavanshi narrowly missed out on a half-century but played an entertaining knock that allowed the tourists to chase down England's lowly total in 24 overs in their first Under-19 one-day international on Friday. Chasing 175 for victory, Suryavanshi opened the batting for India and immediately made an impact as he smashed 48 runs in just 19 deliveries as India cruised to a six-wicket victory to take a 1-0 lead in the five-match ODI series. England had limped to 174 in 42.2 overs after Rocky Flintoff, son of England great Andrew Flintoff, crafted a patient 56 from 90 deliveries but his disciplined knock was quickly overshadowed by Suryavanshi's fireworks. In his debut season in the Indian Premier League, Suryavanshi had justified the hype around him by scoring 252 runs in seven matches, including a century which made him the youngest player to score a hundred in men's Twenty20 cricket. The 14-year-old prodigy only burgeoned his reputation as he relied on his IPL experience, smashing three fours and five sixes at Hove, where India were going at nearly 10 runs an over. He scored 21 runs in the sixth over from Jack Home when the Indian teenager cleared the ropes three times before he went after James Minto, with both bowlers immediately taken out of the attack. Suryavanshi eventually fell to spinner Ralphie Albert when he skied an effort to point, but he had laid the foundation for the chase before Abhigyan Kundu (45 not out) guided India over the line. (Reporting by Rohith Nair in Bengaluru; editing by Pritha Sarkar)
The Star
3 hours ago
- The Star
Soccer-Everton captain Coleman signs one-year contact extension
FILE PHOTO: Soccer Football - Premier League - Everton v Southampton - Goodison Park, Liverpool, Britain - May 18, 2025 Everton's Seamus Coleman reacts after being substituted after sustaining an injury REUTERS/Dylan Martinez/File Photo (Reuters) -Everton skipper Seamus Coleman has signed a one-year contract extension, saying on Friday that the chance to lead the club into their new stadium was a key reason to continue. The 36-year-old Ireland international signed the deal just three days before his previous contract expired. He was forced off in the first half of Everton's final game at Goodison Park last month with a thigh injury but is expected to be fit in time for next season. "Thanks to the hard work of many people, we've been able to get into our magnificent new stadium and pave the way for a brighter future under ambitious new owners (Friedkin Group), which I want to be part of," Coleman said in a statement. Coleman joined the Merseyside club from Sligo Rovers in 2009 during David Moyes' first spell as manager. Moyes joined for a second spell in January, guiding Everton to a 13th-place finish. "In David Moyes, we have the perfect manager to lead us into a new era. He showed his abilities once again with the way he had us playing after returning last season. "As the man who brought me to Everton, I can't speak highly enough of him. He gets this football club, the standards required every day, and what it means to play for Everton." Coleman holds the club record for most Premier League appearances (369) and is joint 12th on Everton's all-time list with 428 matches in all competitions, just five behind Dixie Dean and Leon Osman. "This could be a period of real change at the Club and I want somebody who can help deliver the messages of what it means to be an Everton footballer. Seamus has always done that and I know he will continue to do so as we move into a new era," Moyes said. Everton begin their league campaign away at Leeds United on Aug. 18. (Reporting by Shifa Jahan in BengaluruEditing by Toby Davis)
The Star
4 hours ago
- The Star
Soccer-FC Barcelona sells bonds, restructures stadium-revamp debt
A silhouette of a woman walks past behind a FC Barcelona's logo at Camp Nou stadium in Barcelona, Spain, March 24, 2016. REUTERS/Albert Gea MADRID (Reuters) -FC Barcelona said on Friday it was selling 424 million euros ($498 million) in bonds as part of a deal to restructure the debt it contracted for its Camp Nou stadium renovation that allows it to postpone the first repayment to 2033 from 2028. The Spanish football club had secured 1.45 billion euros ($1.70 billion) in financing in 2023 from 20 investors including Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan to overhaul its ageing stadium. The men's first team is scheduled to play a friendly at Camp Nou on August 10 in a partial reopening. The club said in a statement that Goldman Sachs, acting as financial adviser, had facilitated the restructuring of the 424-million-euro debt tranche, allowing the full debt to be repaid from 2033 to 2050. Under the original 2023 deal, the club had been due to pay back investors in progressive tranches - after five, seven, nine, 20, and 24 years. "The club is fulfilling the necessary steps to ensure a gradual and staggered repayment," FC Barcelona said. The average cost of the refinanced amount stands at 5.19%. Barcelona expects the modernised stadium to boost annual revenues by more than 200 million euros through sponsorship deals, naming rights, ticket sales, catering, VIP services, and events. ($1 = 0.8521 euros) (Reporting by Inti Landauro and Corina Pons; Editing by Hugh Lawson)
