At A Glance
- Alex Eala suffered another early elimination after succumbing to Czech Tereza Valentova, 1-6, 2-6, in the opening round of the WTA 250 Kinoshita Group Japan Open in Osaka Tuesday, Oct. 14.
Alex Eala suffers another quick exit in WTA circuit. (AP/File)
Alex Eala suffered another early elimination after succumbing to Czech Tereza Valentova, 1-6, 2-6, in the opening round of the WTA 250 Kinoshita Group Japan Open in Osaka Tuesday, Oct. 14.
Playing unseeded in the competition where hometown bet Naomi Osaka is the No. 1 seed, Eala was completely demolished by the 18-year-old Valentoza in both sets.
With her win, Valentova, world’s No. 78, faces either Belgian Elise Mertens or Spaniard Cristina Bucsa in Round of 16.
The 20-year-old Eala, on the other hand, was handed another tough beating after her recent setback to Japanese Moyuka Uchijima, 6-4, 3-6, 6-2, in the first-round qualifiers of the WTA1000 Wuhan Open in China last Oct. 4.
The country’s top Filipina netter came out inspired as she tried to conjure her magic once again, but it was swiftly countered by Valentova, who cruised into a 5-1 lead in the opening frame.
After enduring a beatdown in the first set, the WTA No. 54 tried to shift the momentum but found herself trailing once again.
Eala managed to cut the deficit, 2-5, but her efforts weren't enough as the Czech netter continued to flash her brilliance and wrapped up their first-ever meeting to advance to the next round.
The Filipina is still in the hunt for another WTA crown after getting her historic one in WTA 125 Guadalajara Open in Mexico last month.
She is also expected to banner the Philippine team for the upcoming 33rd Southeast Asian Games in Thailand this December.