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Manila Bulletin devider Sports devider Rising stars Eala, Jovic fall short in Auckland semis

Rising stars Eala, Jovic fall short in Auckland semis

Published Jan 9, 2026 06:57 pm

At A Glance

  • Alex Eala and Iva Jovic fell short of their bid of advancing to the championship round after yielding to Chinese veterans Yifan Xu and Zhaoxuan Yang, 5-7, 3-6, in the ASB Classic in Auckland, New Zealand Friday, Jan. 9.
Alex Eala, right, and Iva Jovic. (ASB Classic)
Alex Eala, right, and Iva Jovic. (ASB Classic)
Alex Eala and Iva Jovic fell short of their bid of advancing to the championship round after yielding to Chinese veterans Yifan Xu and Zhaoxuan Yang, 5-7, 3-6, in the ASB Classic in Auckland, New Zealand Friday, Jan. 9.
Eala and Jovic delivered a promising start but the edge on experience of the Chinese pair proved worthy in the semifinal that lasted one hour and 26 minutes.
Xu and Yang have now arranged a title showdown against France’s Kristina Mladenovic and China’s Hanyu Guo, who entered the finale via walkover in the semis against Indonesian Janice Tjen and American Caty McNally.
Eala and Jovic, for their part, exited the doubles category with much lessons highlighted by a stunning win over American Venus Williams and Ukrainian Elina Svitolina, 7-6(7), 6-1.
It was evident that fatigue took a toll on the 20-year-old Eala after coming from a 6-3, 6-2 quarterfinal win over Poland’s Magda Linette to book her semis ticket in the ASB singles event just a few hours earlier.
Eala and Jovic’s mission in Auckland aren’t over yet as the emerging stars brace for their respective semis action in the singles where they face China’s Xinyu Wang and Svitolina, respectively.
A win for the budding netters would set them up an exciting duel for the singles title.
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