Another bitter loss for Eala

MANILA, Philippines — Top-seeded Alex Eala ran out of gas in the clutch against a seasoned foe in Rebecca Marino of Canada, 6-1, 0-6, 6-7 (4-7), and missed a Final Four ticket in the Lexus Ilkley Open yesterday in England. 

Eala yielded to a 5-2 finishing kick by the 34-year-old and eighth-seeded Marino in the extended third set for a quarterfinals exit in one hour 47 minutes. 

Up against a lower-ranked Marino, who’s WTA No. 107, the WTA No. 77 Eala took the first set in style but was on the receiving end of a shutout in the second that paved the way for a back-and-forth decider. 

The 20-year-old Eala was still in play after four games, 2-2, but that proved as her last stand on the way out of the grass tourney after scoring a pair of sweeps in the early rounds.

Marino will shoot for a seat in the finale in the $125,000 tourney against either Celine Naef of Switzerland or Amarni Banks of Great Britain. 

Still, it was a commendable stand for Eala with her first deep run in the last four tournaments before her anticipated stint at Wimbledon on June 30 to July 11.