By CARLO ANOLIN
Filipino tennis sensation Alex Eala produced another great tennis and barged into the final with a 6-3, 6-4 win over Hong Kong’s Adithya Karunaratne in the ITF Manacor in Spain Saturday.
Eala needed one hour and 36 minutes to book her first-ever final appearance in the professional ranks.
The 15-year-old Eala caught her rival off-guard with her booming serves apart from tallying a remarkable 75 percent break points won compared to Karunaratne’s 57.
Karunaratne, ITF’s No. 14, tried to extend the match into a deciding third set when she took a 30-15 lead in the in the 10th game of the second frame.
But Eala refused to blink and won the next three points to seal the deal.
Eala, ranked No. 3 in ITF Juniors, is set to take on Yvonne Cavalle-Reimers, 28, on Sunday morning (Sunday evening, Manila time).
Though Eala had pulled off a stunning 6-4, 6-1 upset win over top seed world No. 2 Seone Mendez of Australia in the second round on Friday and French lass Carole Monnet, 6-7, 7-6, 6-4, in the quarters on Saturday, she has to play extraordinarily in Sunday’s final to nail her first title.
For one, Eala will up against a local player.
The Spaniard advanced to the final by defeating Leolia Jeanjean of France, 6-4, 6-2, within one hour and 16 minutes of their semifinal duel.
