By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña
Alex Eala may have failed to advance to the next round of the Miami Open but she still had a memorable stint after pulling off a win before suffering a defeat in her second qualifying match on March 19, 2024, at the Miami Gardens.
The Filipina tennis sensation was off to a great start after showing no mercy on Italy’s Sara Errani- 6.3, 6.1- in her debut match at the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) 1000 tournament.
Eala’s tremendous groundstroke game was on full display against the Italian star and dominated the offensive department after tallying a total of 60 winners.
Aside from her baseline prowess, Eala also showcased his much-improved service game after recording four service aces and reached the 68% win rate on her first service.
Eala meant pure business against Errani as she bullied her with her down-the-line forehand bombs capped off by several winners in the long baseline exchanges.
In the last set, Errani attempted to break Eala’s rhythm when she applied more spins in her strokes including heavy slices but the Filipina remained laser-focused and punished her with her forehand attacks.
Unlike her first match where she dominated from the get-go, Eala suffered a different fate in her second match after losing at the hands of Emiliana Arango- 2.6, 7.5, 6.1-.
Just like her match against Errani, Eala quickly grabbed a 1-0 lead after a one-sided first-set affair. However, the tables immediately turned in the last two sets when Arango turned beast mode and doubled her effort in chasing the wide-placed forehand shots.
Eala was close to winning the match after reaching the match point in the second set but Arango courageously fought for every point to frustrate the Filipina.
With the lost chance after letting the match point slip away, Arango took control of the match in a jiffy and weathered the storm in the third and final set.
Eala had her chances once again after holding a couple of her service possessions but the fiery Arango proved to be too much and will be advancing in the next round of the Miami Open.
Despite the exit, Eala will still have the chance to boost her WTA rankings as she will join the next set of ITF circuit tournaments next week.
