By MARK REY MONTEJO
World No. 4 American Coco Gauff apologized to Filipino fans for waiting too long before they could watch their idol – Alex Eala – play in the WTA 1000 Dubai Tennis Championships in the United Arab Emirates early Thursday (Manila time).
That’s because it took Gauff two hours and eighteen minutes to dispatch Belgian Elise Mertens on the center court.
“I’m really happy to get through today, I know you guys are probably here for Alex, so I’m sorry to make you wait,” said tournament No. 3 seed Gauff moments after pulling off a tense-filled 2-6, 7-6(9), 6-3 win over Belgian Elise Mertens.
Still, she expressed nothing but gratitude for the extra support she received from the Filipinos.
“But if I’m not… mistaken I think some of you guys are cheering for me, so I appreciated it a lot, and I hope you guys enjoy the next match, but thank you for cheering me for now,” she added.
Gauff and Mertens traded heavy shots and turned their match into a battle of wills, requiring a deciding third set to determine the winner, thus pushing Eala’s scheduled match with veteran Romanian Sorana Cirstea by extra minutes.
The long wait, however, was worth it as Eala got back at Cirstea, 7-5, 6-4, also in their Last 16 duel.
It was ironic later that evening as Gauff, a two-time Grand Slam champion, arranged a quarterfinal clash against Eala – the first-ever meeting of two stars in the deep and competitive professional tennis field.
No. 47 Eala later heaped praise on her former doubles partner.
“I’m looking forward to it. Coco is such an amazing person and we tend to forget that she’s just a year older than me but she’s a great role model for so many so I’m really excited for that match,” said Eala.
With the news of Eala’s victory spreading like wild fire, fans rushed online and at the venue to secure a ticket for the much-awaited collision between Eala and Gauff.
The Dubai Duty Free Tennis Stadium, which has a sitting capacity of 5,000, already ran out of admissions for the supporters who want to witness the showdown up close.
It was another jam-packed game for Eala who is sort of a “rock star” throughout her Middle East swing.
