By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña
Alex Eala lost the final leg of the W15 Manacor pro tournament to Russian Oksana Selekhmeteva in straight sets, 2-6, 3-6.
It was a different start for Eala after mostly gaining control of the first set in her past matches during the first leg of the tournament.
Selekhmeteva controlled the tempo and did not allow the 15-year-old Filipina to deliver her signature forehand groundstrokes.
The Russian’s net game was a huge problem for Eala. This negated her placement of volley shots by cutting the distance in the mid-court.
Heading into the second set, Eala gained some momentum and held her service twice to kick-off the score to 2-2.
However, the Russian once again snowballed through the second set and went aggressive to the net to outwork the Filipina.
Selekhmeteva is the current ITF Juniors rank no. 7 while Eala ranks four places higher than her entering their quarterfinals showdown.
Despite the loss, Eala’s camp bared that this is just the beginning and they are looking to join several professional tournaments available to boost the Filipina’s points for higher ranking.
