Alex Eala pounced on Momoko Kobori, 6-3, 6-3, Friday to barge into the semifinals of the W25 Chiang Rai International Tennis Federation (ITF) tournament in Thailand.

The unseeded Eala dictated the tempo against her Japanese rival to arrange a Final Four meeting with China’s YieXin Ma, who won after Hong Kong’s Ho Ching Wu retired, 6-2, 1-2.
Prior to beating Kobori, Eala downed Serbia’s Katarina Kozarov, 4-6, 6-4, 6-1, in the opening round and Thailand’s Patcharin Cheapchandej, 6-3, 6-4, in the second round.
The 16-year-old, however, was not so fortunate in the doubles after she and Dutch partner Indy De Vroome lost to Patcharin and Punnin Kovapitukted, 4-6, 7-5, 10-6.
The tournament is one of Eala’s tuneup events heading to her debut appearance at the 31st Southeast Asian Games in Hanoi, Vietnam next month.
She is scheduled to compete in the second and third legs of the said tournament in the next two weeks.