Alex Eala shocks Joanne Zuger, 6-4 6-1, advances to Round of 16
RAMPAGING Alex M. Eala stunned Swiss favorite Joanne Zuger in straight sets, 6-4, 6-1, to barge into the Round of 16 of the W60 Grenoble in France.
Ms. Eala fended off a late rally by Ms. Zuger, the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) No. 264, in the opening frame before blitzing to a 5-0 lead in the second en route to her third straight win following a sweep of the qualifiers.
It’s her first Round of 16 appearance in the women’s professional circuit since the WTA 250 Cluj-Napoca Winners Open in Romania last August.
“I’m glad to have made it through the qualifying rounds and won my first round in the W60 Grenoble. I can feel your support from across the globe,” said Ms. Eala, who beat Italy’s Stefania Rubini and France’s Thanh Lan Truong in the qualifiers.
The 16-year-old Filipina will face home bet Chloe Pacquet today for a seat in the quarterfinals of the tough $60,000 joust featuring a number of top-300 players in the WTA.
Ms. Pacquet, 27, is the No. 4 seed in the 32-strong main draw and the No. 124 player in the WTA. She made short work of Latvia’s Kamilla Bartone, 6-1, 6-0, in the first round to advance.
Ms. Eala, the WTA No. 587, is hoping to spring another upset after slowly rediscovering her groove from consecutive early exits this year and a foot injury that sidelined her late last year.
Also the world junior No. 12 player, she is gunning for her second professional title after ruling the W15 Manacor in Spain last year. — John Bryan Ulanday
