Eala makes history for Philippines by reaching Eastbourne final
EASTBOURNE, England :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 19-year-old Australian Maya Joint who beat Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova 7-5 6-3.
It will be the youngest Eastbourne final since 1981 when Tracy Austin faced fellow American Andrea Jaeger.
"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.
Joint continued her impressive run as she reached her first WTA final on grass, coming from 5-3 behind in the opening set against Pavlyuchenkova to take control.
"I'm very excited," the 51st-ranked Joint said on court. "I've learned to love playing on grass this week."
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
CNA
2 hours ago
- CNA
Moutet downs Michelsen to reach first ATP final in over five years
Corentin Moutet booked his place in the Mallorca Open final with a 6-4 7-6(3) win over third seed Alex Michelsen on Friday, reaching his first ATP showpiece match in over five years. The Frenchman will face Tallon Griekspoor in Saturday's showdown after the Dutchman secured a 6-4 6-4 win over Canadian second seed Felix Auger-Aliassime. The unseeded Moutet, whose only previous appearance in an ATP final was in Doha in 2020, broke twice in the opening set and remained solid on serve to take it 6-4. Moutet's court craft kept his American opponent off balance throughout, with his lefty angles and slice disrupting Michelsen's rhythm. The second set was a tighter affair, with both players trading early breaks. Michelsen created five break points at 4-3 but 26-year-old Moutet saved them all in a gutsy hold. The American edged ahead 6-5, but Moutet responded with a composed service game to force a tiebreak. Moutet went ahead 4-3 in the breaker and never looked back, sealing the match on his first opportunity and will now be biding to win his maiden ATP title. Fourth seed Griekspoor secured a break in each set and held firm on serve to reach the final. Auger-Aliassime made a few errors but mostly struggled to challenge Griekspoor's serve, falling short in key moments.
Straits Times
3 hours ago
- Straits Times
Archer added to England squad for second test against India
FILE PHOTO: Cricket - One Day International - England Practice Sessions - The Oval, London, Britain - September 12, 2023 England's Jofra Archer during practice Action Images via Reuters/Andrew Couldridge/File Photo REUTERS Archer added to England squad for second test against India Fast bowler Jofra Archer has been added to England's squad for the second test against India starting on July 2 at Edgbaston, the country's cricket board (ECB) said on Thursday. The 30-year-old returns to England's test set-up for the first time since the 2021 tour of India, following a lengthy absence due to a recurring elbow issue and back stress fracture. Archer, who has taken 42 wickets in 13 tests, made his first appearance in a first-class match in four years on Sunday in the County Championship with Sussex. The pacer's inclusion marks the only change in the England squad that secured a thrilling five-wicket victory against India at Headingley on Tuesday to take a 1-0 lead in the five-match series. Squad Ben Stokes (captain), Jofra Archer, Shoaib Bashir, Jacob Bethell, Harry Brook, Brydon Carse, Sam Cook, Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Jamie Overton, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Jamie Smith, Josh Tongue and Chris Woakes REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
CNA
5 hours ago
- CNA
Suryavanshi fireworks guide India Under-19s to ODI win over England
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.
