Eala falls vs German, bows out of Guadalajara 125 Open

MANILA, Philippines – Filipina tennis ace Alex Eala has exited the Guadalajara 125 Open’s round of 16 in Mexico after falling against Germany’s Tatjana Maria, 7-5, 6-2, Thursday morning (Manila time). 

Maria, the World No. 99, was just too much for the 19-year-old Philippine bet, punching in four aces in the two-set singles’ win. 

The 37-year-old German, ranked fourth in the tourney, also won 37 service points and 30 receiving points in a sheer display of mastery. 

The Asian Games bronze medalist, on the other hand, only had 25 service points won and 23 receiving points won. 

After the tough first set loss, the Filipina was able to go toe-to-toe early with Maria, with a 2-3 tally. 

However, Eala was just overwhelmed as Maria won the next four games, with the former playing erratically and the latter keeping it methodical. 

Eala previously crashed into the round of 32 after outlasting American Victoria Hu, 3-6, 7-6(2), 6-4, on Tuesday. 

Eala and her partner, Australia’s Kimberly Birrell, also exited the doubles play after getting swept by the Hungarian pair of Fanny Stollar and Katarzyna Piter, 6-4, 6-4, also on Thursday.