By KRISTEL SATUMBAGA
Alex Eala fell short in her bid for a first pro doubles title as she and Russian partner Oksana Selekhmeteva lost to Lithuania’s Justina Mikulskyte and Romania’s Oana Georgeta Simion, 6-3, 7-5, in the W25 Platja D’Aro tournament in Spain Saturday, May 22.
Playing for the first time together, the unseeded Eala and Selekhmeteva did try everything but their rivals proved too strong and cunning, dropping their title match in one hour and 22 minutes.
The Filipino-Russian tandem almost forged a deciding set when they led 5-4 in the second set, but the more experienced Mikulskyte and Simion recovered mightily by winning the next three games to secure the win.
Still, it was an impressive performance for Eala for it was her first doubles tournament in the pros.
She and Selekhmeteva opened their bid with a 6-2, 6-0 victory over Spain’s Valeria Koussenkova and South Africa’s Warona Mdlulwa before stunning Russian top seed Vlada Koval and Sofya Lansere, 6-3, 2-6, 12-10.
They toppled Dutch pair Isabelle Haverlag and Suzan Lamens, 6-3, 6-1, in the semis.
