Alex Eala in W60 Vitoria-Gasteiz. –ALEX EALA PHOTO
MANILA, Philippines — Alex Eala reached the semifinals of the W60 Vitoria-Gasteiz after a dominant 6-1, 6-1 victory over Eden Silva of Great Britain on Friday evening (Manila time) in Spain.
The 17-year-old Filipino tennis ace bucked a first game loss and took full control of the next six to take the first set that paced her 5-0 start in the second, never looking back to complete her rousing quarterfinals win in the $60, 000 tournament.
Eala forged a semifinal duel against the No.3 seed Jessika Ponchet of France on Saturday at 6:30 p.m. (Manila time).
Ponchet eliminated Eala in the round of 16 of W25 Palma del Rio, 6-2, 6-1, earlier this month.
Eala, who was awarded a walkover victory last Thursday after Taiwanese Lee Ya-hsuan retired in the third set, is making her second $60,000 semifinals appearance this year from a runner-up finish in the W60 Madrid last month.
The Rafael Nadal Academy scholar is eyeing her third pro title since winning her second in W25 Chiang Rai last April.