Eala reigns in London

MANILA, Philippines — Alex Eala netted her fourth professional title, beating No. 2 seed Arina Rodionova of Australia in the W25 Roehampton final yesterday in London.

It was a killing spree against higher seeds for the sixth-seeded Filipina wunderkind who highlighted her run with a conquest of Rodionova in the gold-medal match in one hour and 57 minutes.

Eala, the WTA No. 250, relied on a pair of strong 3-0 starts in each set for the win in sweeping fashion over the more seasoned Rodionova.

The 33-year-old Aussie is WTA No. 166 with 13 pro titles to boast but proved no match for the 18-year-old Pinay.

Eala connected on most of her serves while breaking Rodionova on different occasions, especially in the third set when she was attempting an uprising from a 1-4 deficit.

She previously bested No. 1 seed Priscilla Hon of Australia in the quarterfinals and No. 3 seed Arianne Hartono of the Netherlands in the semifinals.

Eala also drubbed Gabriella Da Silva Fick and Destanee Aiava in the first two rounds.

Aiava was her partner albeit the Filipina-Aussie duo exited in the quarterfinals of the doubles tilt.

Eala’s conquest in Great Britain came just two months after ruling the W25 Yecla in Spain, thus, nailing a first two-title harvest in a season in her budding career.

In the same month, Eala graduated from the Rafael Nadal Academy in Mallorca, Spain, where she spent five years as a full scholar.

Her earlier triumphs came in the 2021 W15 Manacor in Spain and the W25 Chiang Rai in Thailand.