By MARK REY MONTEJO
The youthful pair of Alex Eala and Iva Jovic fell short of their doubles crown bid after losing to Chinese veterans Yifan Xu and Zhaoxuan Yang, 5-7, 3-6, in the semifinal round of the ASB Classic in Auckland, New Zealand Friday, Jan. 9.
Eala and Jovic showed a promising start behind their powerful shot-making, but the seasoned duo of Xu and Yang leaned on their experience to outplay the youngsters in the critical stages of each set to win the contest that lasted one hour and 26 minutes.
The two Chinese vets now arranged a title showdown against France’s Kristina Mladenovic and China’s Hanyu Guo, who entered the finale via a walkover of pair Indonesian Janice Tjen and American Caty McNally.
Eala and Jovic, for their part, exit the doubles category with a bang after making a statement in the opening round that saw them beat battle-tested netters in former No. 1 American Venus Williams and Ukrainian Elina Svitolina, 7-6(7), 6-1.
Though the momentum was on their side, the Filipina-American duo earned a quick route to the semis after a bye from Czech Jesika Maleckova and Mexican Renata Zarazua.
It was evident that the schedule took a toll on the 20-year-old Eala as hours earlier she scored a 6-3, 6-2 quarterfinal win over Poland’s Magda Linette in the singles event.
The country’s top tennis ace, however, still impressed as she and Jovic surged to an early 4-2 lead, only to see it slip away when Xu and Yang showcased their veteran poise, leveling the set at 5-5 before prevailing in the next two games.
In the second set, Eala and Jovic got off to another superb outing to seize a 3-1 cushion. It look like the two regained their form, but the Chinese bets stormed back with five straight wins to seal the match.
Job’s not finish
Despite their setback in the doubles, Eala and Jovic’s jobs in Auckland weren’t finished yet as the emerging stars were set for their respective semis action in the singles where they face China’s Xinyu Wang and Svitolina, respectively.
A win for the budding netters would set them up an exciting duel for the singles title.
