By MARK REY MONTEJO
Alex Eala overcame a third set scare and claimed another Japanese scalp in Hayu Kinoshita, 6-3, 4-6, 7-5, to advance to the quarterfinal round of the ITF W100 Takasaki in Japan Friday, Nov. 22.
The 19-year-old Eala needed almost two and half hours to beat the crowd-favorite as they exchanged powerful shots to the delight of their respective camps.
But in the end, it was Eala’s resilience that prevailed, rallying from a 5-2 deficit to complete another great escape.
The win was a fitting follow up to Eala’s 6-2, 6-0 demolition of Ena Koike.
Up next for Eala is Thai Mananchaya Sawangkaew, who bundled out Norway’s Malene Helgo (6-2, 6-3) and
Chinese Taipei’s Chia Yi Tsao (4-6, 6-3, 6-2), in the second and first stages, respectively.
The game was one-sided in the opening match but Eala encountered trouble with her groundstrokes and serves in the second set, allowing the Japanese to draw level.
