ALEX Eala failed to sustain her rousing start last night, dropping a 6-4, 6-7 (3-7), 4-6 heartbreaker to feisty Argentine Julia Riera in the second qualifying round of the French Open women’s singles at the famed Roland Garros clay courts in Paris, Francis.
After a sizzling comeback from a 2-4 deficit in the opening set, Eala seemed on the verge of becoming the first Filipina to reach the main draw of the prestigious grand slam at the expense of Riera, ranked No. 93 in the Women’s Tennis Association ratings.
But the Argentine was just as tenacious, prevailing in a spine-tingling second set that ended at 6-all, paving the way for a super tie-break where she totally dominated her foe 7-3 to extend the match to a deciding third set.
After this, Riera, 27, banked on her experience to break Eala in the pivotal ninth game of the rubber then held serve in the next to finally settle the issue after a marathon match lasting two hours and 33 minutes.
Usually cool under pressure, Eala faded in the clutch, succumbing to successive errors that allowed Riera to take the 10th game of the third set convincingly.
The pretty Pinay southpaw’s French Open journey ended on Court 13, her bid to become the first Filipino netter to reach the main draw of the competition since the late Felicisimo Ampon reached the quarterfinals of the 1953 edition of the tournament, ending.
