By KRISTEL SATUMBAGA
Alex Eala’s fairytale run at the International Tennis Federation (ITF) Women’s World Tennis Tour was halted Friday night, losing to a more experienced opponent in the quarterfinals of the W15 Manacor in Spain.
The 15-year-old Eala succumbed to seventh seed Ylena In-Albon of Switzerland, 6-0, 6-3, a defeat that snapped her amazing seven-game winning run with the first five wins giving her first pro title in the first leg last weekend.
Eala struggled to find her rhythm, making forced shots that were either long or wide – reason why she was completely beaten by her Swiss rival.
Eala briefly gained composure in the second set when she won three straight games to crawl back from a 3-0 hole.
But the 21-year-old In-Albon, who is ranked No. 432 in the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA), quickly regained her form, claiming the next three games en route to the win.
Despite the defeat, Eala showed that she can compete against higher-ranked rivals.
She opened up her second leg campaign with an upset victory over second seed Mirjam Bjorklund of Sweden, 6-4, 3-6, 6-3, and followed it up with a second-round win over Spain’s Alba Carrillo Marin, 6-2, 6-3.
But against the steady Swiss lass, Eala appeared to have lost her patience on several occasions – the most critical was during the 9th game of the second set where she squandered a 40-15 advantage.