Eala makes good use of break

Thirteen-year-old Alex Eala took a quick break from her tennis scholarship in Rafael Nadal’s school hoping to add another feather to her cap.

She took a step closer to that goal Wednesday.

Eala crushed Hsuan Huang of Chinese Taipei, 6-0, 6-1, to get through the second round of the girls singles of the Phinma-PSC International Juniors Tennis Championships Week 1 at Manila Polo Club in Makati.

Joining her in the next round is Amanda Gabrielle Zoleta who defeated Skia Kung of Chinese Taipei, 6-2, 6-2.

Eala trains full time at the prestigious Rafael Nadal Academy in Mallorca, Spain.

“She just came back for this tournament and with her age, she’s only allowed 10 tournaments per year, so this will be her eighth and ninth [tournament],” said father Mike Eala.

Arthur Craig Pantino led the local boys’ charge by beating Japan’s Ryotaro Koshiba, 6-0, 6-2, in the first round. Joining him were Justin Suarez, Matthew Garcia and Aljon Talatayod to the next round of the tourney played on clay indoor courts.