By JEREMIAH SEVILLA
A second pro title remained elusive for Alex Eala as the teen sensation bowed out of the third leg of the International Tennis Federation (ITF) W15 Manacor Friday night in Mallorca, Spain.
The 15-year-old Eala tried to reproduce the magic of her second round win but the 18-year-old Russian Oksana Selekhmeteva proved steadier and dropped a 6-2, 6-3 decision.
Coming off a tiring 7-6 (3), 1-6, 6-3 victory over German Silvia Ambrosio last Thursday, Eala started tentatively, her shots lacking power which the Russian exploited at will to win the opener without difficulty.
Though Eala put up a valiant fight in the second set, her effort still fell short against the higher-ranked Selekhmeteva to exit the $15,000 tilt.
Eala sits at No. 942 in the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) rankings while fellow junior reserve Selekhmeteva is at No. 611.
Last January 24, Eala won her first pro crown after ruling the inaugural of the 3-leg Manacor tour with a 5-7, 6-1, 6-2 beating of hometown bet Yvonne Cavalle-Reimers in the final.
But she failed to sustain her momentum in the second leg five days later, losing to Ylena In-Albon of Switzerland, 6-0, 6-3, in the quarterfinals.
