By KRISTEL SATUMBAGA
Alex Eala bucked a slow start and turned back Ekaterina Kazionova, 2-6, 6-4, 6-4, to advance to the second round of the W60 Hamburg International Tennis Federation (ITF) event in Germany Tuesday, Oct. 18.
It was a tough match for Eala, who needed two hours and 44 minutes before edging her Russian foe.
Up next for the PH sports princess is a meeting with Belgian top seed Ysaline Bonaventure
Bonaventure displayed her might by thumping Croatia’s Jana Fett, 6-4, 6-4.
Locked at 4-all in the second set, Eala regained her composure by holding her serve and breaking Kazionova in the next to force a deciding third set.
Kazionova showed her experience in the third after trimming her 5-1 deficit to 5-4, but Eala held her ground and broke the Russian’s serve to snare the match win.
Eala expects a tougher match against Bonaventure, who was 11 years her senior and a fellow left-hander.
Ranked No. 118 compared to Eala’s No. 248, Bonaventure boasts of 12 ITF titles including the W60+H Bendigo in Australia last January.
The Belgian also had five Grand Slam appearances, with her best finish a Round of 64 in the 2020 US Open.
