By KRISTEL SATUMBAGA
Alex Eala mustered all her might in her bid to overpower Emiliana Arango but her valiant effort still fell short and lost 6-0, 2-6, 6-3 in the first round of the French Open on Sunday, May 25.
The unseeded Eala, who just turned 20 last Friday, May 23, fought back from a slow start by dominating the second frame, but failed to sustain that run to make an early exit in her first main draw appearance at a Grand Slam event.
Play was halted due to rain with Eala leading 3-2 in the second set, allowing the Filipina to regain her composure after dropping her serve in the fifth game.
When play resumed, Eala quickly broke Arango’s serve before claiming the next two games and eventually the set.
But it turned out to be Eala’s last stand as Arango refused to fade away, opening the third frame with a quick 2-0 lead that immediately dictated the pace throughout.
Though Eala held her serves, she failed to break Arango’s. A service winner from the Colombian set the tone in the ninth game as Eala stumbled to back-to-back unforced errors to trail 0-40.
The Filipina briefly fought back to make it 15-40, but Arango closed it out with another service winner.
Despite the singles loss, Eala is still seeing action in the women’s doubles with Mexican Renata Zarazua, where they are scheduled to face Ukrainian Marta Kostyuk and Romanian Elena-Gabriela Ruse in the opening round on Wednesday, May 28.
