Mindanaotoday.com | PH’s Eala makes US Open finals
By: Jean Malanum
MANILA – Alexandra Eala of the Philippines pulled off a 6-1, 7-6 (7-5) victory over Canadian Victoria Mboko on Saturday to reach the girls’ singles finals of the US Open Juniors Championships at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York.
The No. 10 seed needed one hour and 21 minutes to prevail over Mboko, the No. 9 seed who ousted fourth pick Swiss Celine Naef, 7-5, 2-6, 7-5, in the quarterfinal round.
Eala, the world junior No. 167, will meet second seed and French Open girls’ singles reigning champion Czech Lucie Havlickova in the finals on Sunday.
“Isa pa (One more),” she posted on her Facebook page.
Havlickova, world No. 3 in both singles and doubles, defeated seventh-seeded Diana Shnaider, 6-4, 6-4, in the other semifinal match.
Havlickova also reached the doubles finals with Shnaider.
They scored a 6-1, 7-6 (7-1) win over American Liv Hovde and Australian Taylah Preston to advance against Germans Carolina Kuhl and Ella Seidel, who advanced past American Alexis Blokhina and Canadian Annabelle Xu, 7-5, 6-4.
If the 17-year-old Havlickova wins her two finals matches, she will become the second junior to win both titles in the tournament after American Robin Montgomery, who achieved the feat last year.
Eala won the Australian Open and French Open juniors doubles titles last year.
The 17-year-old debuted at the 2019 Southeast Asian Games held in the Philippines, snagging the bronze medals in women’s singles, women’s team, and mixed doubles with Filipino-American Treat Conrad Huey.
She has been training at the Rafa Nadal Academy in Mallorca, Spain for the past four years. (PNA)
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