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Manila Bulletin devider Sports devider Eala trounces Turkish foe to reach second round of Eastbourne Open qualifiers

Eala trounces Turkish foe to reach second round of Eastbourne Open qualifiers

Published Jun 22, 2025 02:19 pm

At A Glance

  • Alex Eala continued her buildup on the grasscourt as well as her preparation for the 2025 Wimbledon, taking down Turkey's Zeynep Sonmez, 6-1, 6-3, to open the qualifiers for the WTA 250 Lexus Eastbourne Open in style on Saturday, June 22.
Alex Eala continued her buildup on the grasscourt as well as her preparation for the 2025 Wimbledon, taking down Turkey’s Zeynep Sonmez, 6-1, 6-3, to open the qualifiers for the  WTA 250 Lexus Eastbourne Open in style on Saturday, June 22.
The 20-year-old Filipina banked on a scintillating start that saw her almost blank Sonmez in the opening set before shrugging off any form of resistance in the second to pick up the victory and advance to the second round.
The world No. 77 proved to be a mismatch for the No. 82 Turkish as Sonmez struggled against Eala’s strong forehands, limiting her to just one game in the first set.
Sonmez did show some semblance of fight in the second set when she cut Eala’s once 4-1 lead to 4-3. The Filipina tennis sensation, however, easily restored order and cruised to the win that only lasted 72 minutes.
It was Eala’s second victory over Sonmez after the two crossed paths at the W60 Nantes in France back in 2023. Eala came away with the victory, 7-6(5), 6-4.
With the win, Eala set up a clash against world No. 56 Hailey Baptiste on Sunday night with a spot to the main draw at stake.
The American Baptiste advanced to the next round after taking down China’s Yuan Yun, 7-5, 6-3.
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