ALEX Eala and Czech partner Barbora Palicova stood their ground over favored counterparts but still ran out of steam in a tough 3-6, 6-4, 11-13 first-round loss in the W60 Chiasso doubles tilt in Switzerland.
Up against the fourth-seeded duo of Indonesian Beatrice Gumulya and another Czech bet Anna Siskova, the unranked tandem did not shy away from the challenge by dragging their opponents to an extended tiebreaker.
The match lasted almost two hours with Mmess. Eala and Palicova even snatching the driver seat at 11-10 only to surrender the last three games en route to an unfortunate exit in the Round of 16.
Mmess. Gumulya and Siskova will face off against either the Swiss duo of Xenia Koll and Celina Naef or the tandem of France’s Carole Monnet and Switzerland’s Jenny Duerst.
Good thing for the 17-year-old Filipina tennis sensation, she’s still in the running in the singles tournament starting with a first-round duel against Romania’s Alexandra Ignatik.
Ms. Eala’s Switzerland tourney is part of her preparations to qualify in the Roland Garros next month.
A scholar of the Rafael Nadal Academy in Spain, Eala is currently No. 215 in the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) rankings with hopes of a return to the French Open, where she previously won a junior doubles Grand Slam.
Ms. Eala is coming off a brief stint in the Miami Open last month after winning the US Open junior championships to become the first Filipina junior singles Grand Slam champion. — John Bryan Ulanday
