Alex Eala needed to overcome a tough challenge from Himeno Sakatsume to advance to the quarterfinals of the Philippine Women’s Open.
Alex Eala needed to dig deep after Himeno Sakatsume presented a great challenger in their Round of 16 showdown at the Philippine Women’s Open on Wednesday.
The Filipina ace found herself playing catch up in the opening set before eventually pulling through for a 6-4, 6-0 win at the Rizal Memorial Tennis Center.
Even as Eala scored a crucial break to she seized a 3-2 lead, Sakatsume’s challenge didn’t end there.
The Japanese broke Eala’s serve right back to tie the match, then survived three deuces to hold her own serve and regain the advantage.
Feeling like her back was against the wall, Eala saved four break points in Game 8 to save herself from falling in a 3-5 hole in the opening set.
From then on, a re-energized Eala won eight straight games to clinch the convincing victory.
[RELATED: Alex Eala whips Himeno Sakatsume to reach Philippine Women’s Open quarterfinals]
After the match, Eala credited Sakatsume for putring her in a lot of "difficult positions."
“Yeah, [the match was] super enjoyable. I'm really happy with the win. I think even with the score, it was close throughout the whole match,” she said.
“I was in a lot of tough positions this match, especially in the first set. But I'm really happy with how I fought through it. I think there were definitely some points na parang sa kanya na, but I was able to steal a couple and that's what pushed me through in the end,” Eala added.
Drawing energy from the crowd
Faced with adversity, Eala admitted that she fed off the energy of the crowd especially during 50-50 situations against Sakatsume.
“I’m so motivated," Eala said. "I hope they're just as motivated as me to watch tennis as I am to play tennis.”
As the Philippine Women's Open nears its climax, Eala hopes the good turnout continues especially as matches are only bound to get more intense.
“I think we've had a lot of really good matches," she said. "And I'm so happy with how many people have turned out throughout the day. Kahit umuulan, kahit mainit, nandito kayo. Kaya maraming salamat po," Eala added.
Alex now moves on to the Philippine Women’s Open quarterfinals, set to face Colombian Camila Osorio on Thursday, January 29.
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Luisa Morales is a sports writer with a special interest in promoting women’s sports.
Her coverage highlights include the UAAP, PVL, Southeast Asian Games, and the FIBA World Cup. She also follows Alex Eala, the Philippine women’s national football team, and mixed martial arts.