By MARK REY MONTEJO
Alex Eala showed no mercy as she made quick work of Italian Lucia Bronzetti, 6-0, 6-1, to advance to the Round of 16 of he WTA 250 Lexus Eastbourne Open in Great Britain Monday, June 23 (Philippine time).
After a pulsating three-set win over American Hailey Baptiste (56) in qualifiers, Eala, WTA’s No. 77, outplayed another higher-ranked foe in Bronzetti (61) in their Last 32 clash where the Filipina ace put up a masterful performance to secure the win with relative ease.
Bronzetti tried to shift the tempo on her side but was disappointed as Eala had other plans and swiftly closed out the match.
By prevailing, the 20-year-old Eala awaits between Great Britain’s Sonay Kartal and world No. 20 Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia for her next assignment on Wednesday, June 25.
Kartal and Ostapenko, on the other hand, are set for a Last 32 showdown this Tuesday, June 24, at 6 p.m.
It can be remembered, Eala had already faced the two foreign netters in the past years that included her historic campaign in this year’s Miami Open where she toppled Ostapenko, the 2017 French Open champ, in the second round, 7-6(7), 7-5.
Meanwhile, Eala had a contrasting outcome when she first tussled with Kartal after she suffered a 6-2, 6-2 setback in stage two of 2023 W60 Trnava in Slovakia.
The Asian Games double-bronze medalist is looking good so far in her preparation for her second Grand Slam stint in the upcoming Wimbledon slated this week.
Before pulling off a 6-7(7), 7-6(7), 6-1 escape over Baptiste, Eala dominated first Turkey’s Zeynep Sonmez, 6-1, 6-3, in the qualifiers’ opening round.
