MANILA, Philippines — Alex Eala hacked out a stunning 7-6 (5), 6-7 (1), 6-2 win over seasoned foe Jaqueline Adina Cristian of Romania to advance to Round 2 of the W100 Vitoria-Gasteiz yesterday in Spain.
The Filipina teen netter blew a huge 5-2 lead in the second set but recovered to overcome the fifth-seeded Romanian in more than three hours of back-and-forth duel.
She will face Tianmi Mi of China in the Round of 16 for a seat in the quarterfinals.