Alex Eala reaches main draw in Thailand Open

MANILA, Philippines — Alex Eala is through to the main draw of the Thailand Open in Hua Hin as she plowed through the qualifiers on Sunday.

Eala beat 9-seed Kristina Dmitruk, 6-2, 7-5, in the second round of the qualifying tournament to barge into the tournament proper where Canada's Bianca Andreescu is the top seed.

Much like her first match in qualifying, Eala had a strong start when she blew Dmitruk out of the water with a 6-2 win to gain the early advantage.

But the Belarusian made it a more challenging affair in the second stanza and looked to force the third set decider when she took the 6-5 lead.

The 17-year-old Eala held her ground, though, as she notched back-to-back game wins to close out Dmitruk in two sets, 7-5.

Eala will thus reach the main draw in her fifth WTA event in her young career.

In 2021, she had wild card stints at the Winners Open main draw, and in the Miami Open qualifiers. 

Last year, she competed in the main draw in Miami and the qualifiers in the Madrid Open, also as a wild card entry.