Eala rallies, trounces Charaeva to enter Birmingham Open quarterfinals

MANILA, Philippines — Filipina tennis ace Alex Eala stormed back from a huge 2-5 deficit in the second set to barge into the quarterfinal round of the Birmingham Open against Alina Charaeva, 6-2, 7-5, Thursday evening (Manila time.) 

The top-seeded Filipina had to grind out of the hole in the second set to grab the victory in an hour and 40 minutes and set a Final-Eight matchup with Thailand’s Mananchaya Sawangkaew. 

The 21-year-old jumped to a big start, going up 3-0 and holding a 4-1 lead in the first set. 

And while the Russian kept herself alive, Eala breezed through for the first set victory, 6-2. 

Charaeva, though, pushed to force a third set. 

The World No. 130 powered her way to a 5-2 lead. 

But from that point on, Eala slowly but surely dug out of the hole with victories game after game. 

And in the end, she did just enough to grab the victory and advance to the next round. 

Eala punched in three aces in the match, as well as 32 receiving points against her opponent’s 18. 

The Filipina also had 42 service points to Charaeva’s 34.