Filipina tennister Alex Eala dragged Hailey Baptiste into a deciding third set before dominating the endgame to make the main draw of the Eastbourne Open.
Alex Eala is headed to the main draw of the Eastbourne Open after she outperformed an injury-hit Hailey Baptiste, 6(1)-7, 7-6(4), 6-1 in the second round of qualifiers on Sunday (PH time).
Eala, who is in deep preparation for her upcoming Wimbledon debut, bucked a frustrating loss in set 1 to recover in time and force their match into a winner-take-all. Zooming to a commanding set 3 victory, Eala finished things off after two hours and 45 minutes.
The 20-year-old had to go through a set 2 tiebreak as she squandered an early 5-1 lead. But not to be denied, Eala scored back-to-back points to finish the set in an hour and 14 minutes.
In set 3, it was all Eala as Baptiste struggled with her health.
With Eala up 3-0 in the set, the American called for a medical timeout which lasted for a considerable amount of time before action resumed.
But the pain, which seemed to be centered on Baptiste’s lower back and waist, persisted as Eala continued to roll, 5-0.
While the French Open fourth rounder broke Eala’s serve in game 6 to to avoid a shutout, Eala proved inevitable as she clawed back from 15-40 to close out her world no. 56 foe in three sets.