IN their third head-on clash this season yesterday (Wednesday night in Brazil), streaking Filipina tennis ace Alex Eala reasserted her mastery over Argentina’s Julia Riera 6-1, 6-4 to book a ticket in the singles quarterfinals of the Sao Paulo Open at the Parque Villa-Lobos outdoor courts in Sao Paulo, Brazil.
After a lopsided first-set win, the third-seeded Eala, ranked No. 61 in the world, methodically dismantled Riera (No. 188) in the second set, securing the critical points for her second straight victory over the Argentine in an hour and 17 minutes of action at the Maria Esther Bueno Center Court.
Down 40-love in the 10th game, the Argentine saved two match points with a forehand down-the-line passing shot before her rival sent a backhand crosscourt wide, boosting her flickering bid to equalize the set at 5-all.
But after Riera hit a weak forehand drop shot from the baseline, Eala scrambled in time to finally finish her off with a crushing backhand crosscourt shot at the net to stretch her winning run to seven matches, going back to Abierto Zapopan Open in Zapopan, Mexico, that ended over the weekend.
The obvious crowd favorite, Eala, 20, playfully wrote “Sao Paulo in Quarters” and a smiley with a marker on the TV camera lens after the match, much to the gallery’s delight.
Under a clear evening sky and cool weather, the comely Filipina netter secured her third WTA quarterfinal appearance of the season, and will next take on Indonesian No. 1 Janice Tjen (No. 130), 23, who dumped Slovakia’s Martina Okalova also in straight sets 6-1, 6-0 in their quarters clash.
After a much-needed break today, it will be a battle of Southeast Asians between the two hard-court specialists, who are both making their South American debuts on the WTA pro tour and meeting for the first time.
“I said the other day that the Brazilians are super hospitable,” Eala said after the match. “That’s one thing I think you have in common with the Philippines, so I’m feeling at home. I loved the atmosphere tonight.
“Things were pretty calm in the first set, even with some close games. The second set was tougher in terms of the score, but I’m happy with how I handled the situation. When it mattered most, I think I played better,” she noted.
“My confidence is very high. These victories help a lot, but even more important is my ability in recent days to solve problems as they arise,” added the perky athlete, who is keen on making her third WTA semifinal outing, while the Indonesian will be performing in unfamiliar territory.
While the power-serving Riera had six aces to none for her foe, Eala offset that with a better percentage on first serve points won with an 86 percent average in scoring 27 out of 32 attempts in contrast to the 56 percent norm (22/39) of her opponent.
Eala also had the edge in total points won with 60 percent (68/113) to the 40 percent of her foe (45/113).
