Alex Eala advanced to the Round of 16 of the Hong Kong Open after Katie Boulter of the United Kingdom retired due to injury midway through the second set, 6-4, 2-1, on Tuesday evening.
The Filipino tennis ace broke her string of early exits in recent Women’s Tennis Association tournaments but wished Boulter well after their match ended prematurely when she led the second set, 2-1. ‘I’m a little out of words. I think this time of the year is a tough moment for a lot of players physically and mentally, being the end of the season,’ said Eala. ‘I hope that Katie can take this time to recover and just look back at her season proudly.’ The 20-year-old Eala broke a 4-4 tie in the first set, dominating the ninth game and sealing the opener in an extended 10th game. Currently ranked No. 51 in the world, Eala took down a three-time WTA Tour champion who once reached a career-high ranking of No. 29. Eala will face Canada’s Victoria Mboko in the Round of 16 on Thursday. Mboko earlier defeated Talia Gibson, 6(2)-7, 6-1, 6-4.
The Rafa Nadal Academy graduate recently suffered frustrating exits in the Wuhan Open qualifiers and the early rounds of the Japan Women’s Open and Guangzhou Open.
Eala, who made headlines with a dream semifinal run at the Miami Open and claimed her first WTA title at the Guadalajara 125 Open, hopes to finish her season strong in Hong Kong.
On Monday, Eala and partner Hao-Ching Chan of Chinese Taipei were eliminated from the doubles draw after bowing to Kamilla Rakhimova of Russia and Aliaksandra Sasnovich of Belarus, 6-3, 1-6, 7-10.