By Kristel Satumbaga
Alex Eala won the thrilling third-set tiebreak and completed a stunning 2-6, 6-3, 7-6 (8) win over seventh seed Cristina Bucsa of Spain to barge into the quarterfinals of the W25 Grenoble event in France Thursday night.
This was Eala’s fourth quarterfinal appearance in her young pro career, but more than that she improved on her second-round finish in her first $25,000 event appearance in Spain last year.
Playing only in her second $25,000 tournament as a junior exempt, Eala proved she can compete against more experienced rivals including Bucsa.
The 23-year-old Spaniard is ranked No. 164 in the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) and boasts of a title in a $60,000 event in France two years back.
Like in the first round, Eala, now ranked No. 903 from 1190 two weeks back, showed steely nerves in the face of here rival’s fierce challenge.
Though the 15-year-old PH bet squandered a 6-3 lead in the tiebreak, she still managed to will her way en route to one of her biggest wins so far. She needed four match points in beating Bucsa.
Eala’s win set her up a meeting with the winner between unseeded Maja Chwalinksa of Poland and French qualifier Gaelle Desperrier.
Eala only started competing in the pros last year, and is coming off a three-leg stint in the $15,000 Manacor tournament in Spain where she won her first pro title in the opening leg.
