Eala’s grass streak halted

MANILA, Philippines —  Alex Eala bowed to her good friend Iva Jovic of the United States once more, 6-2, 6-2 for a second-round exit in the WTA500 HSBC Championships yesterday at the Queen’s Club in London.

It’s the first loss on grass for Eala this season, crashing out of play in only 76 minutes as Jovic, WTA No. 19 and No. 6 seed in London, put on a clinic yet again.

Jovic, who beat Eala in Round 1 of the French Open, 6-4, 6-2, was unforgiving from the get go, breaking Eala twice to build a 4-1 start and set the tone in the opener.

It was all Jovic from there on, banking on another 5-1 start in the second on two break points once again to reassert mastery of her close pal. 

Eala came in hot after a breakthrough WTA125 Birmingham Open title last week – her first tour crown and the one that broke her 0-13 curse against Czechs with a 5-7, 6-3, 7-5 finals win over Nikola Bartunkova.

She carried that form into Queen’s, dismantling China’s Shuai Zhang 6-3, 6-2 Tuesday for a roaring debut in her first WTA 500 main draw. A qualifier who slid in after withdrawals by Jessica Pegula and Hailey Baptiste, Eala looked poised for a deep run before Jovic slammed the brakes.

The Queen’s Club field, part of Eala’s Wimbledon build-up, is loaded with world No. 2 Elena Rybakina and a slew of top-20 stars. The Championships run June 29 to July 12.