Alex Eala, Janice Tjen shoot for Abu Dhabi Open doubles finals berth

Alex Eala barely had time to catch her breath, and somehow that made the response even more impressive.

Just an hour after bowing out of the singles quarterfinals, the Filipina teen was back on court—this time alongside Janice Tjen—and looked anything but rattled.

[RELATED STORY: Alex Eala, Janice Tjen through to Abu Dhabi Open doubles semis]

Now, the Southeast Asian duo takes aim at a spot in the finals of the Mubadala Abu Dhabi Open doubles, facing Tereza Mihalikova and Olivia Nicholls on Friday night, February 6 (Manila time).

Tipoff is at 8 p.m. at Stadium Court.

Eala and Tjen punched their semifinal ticket with a commanding 6-3, 6-3 win over second-seed pair Shuai Zhang and Cristina Bucsa, a result that turned heads given the pedigree on the other side of the net.

Proudly flying the flag for Southeast Asia, they seized control early in both sets, bolting to identical 3-0 leads and dictating play with crisp returns and fearless net work.

Even when Zhang—already a two-time doubles champion this season, including at the Australian Open—and Bucsa pushed back to trim the second set deficit, Eala and Tjen never wavered, regrouping to close out three of the final four games.

The victory was also a telling bounce-back moment for Eala, who had just endured a tough singles loss to world No. 11 Ekaterina Alexandrova earlier in the evening.

[ALSO READ: Alexandrova prevents Eala comeback in Abu Dhabi QF: 'I saw the last match’]

Instead of lingering on the disappointment, she flipped the switch almost instantly, showing poise beyond her years as she and Tjen overwhelmed a far more experienced pairing.

That mental toughness will be crucial against Mihalikova and Nicholls, who advanced to the semifinals by dispatching Irina Khromacheva and Andreja Klepac.

Eala and Tjen enter the semifinals brimming with confidence and momentum.

(With reports from Jan Ballesteros)

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[Editor’s note: This article was written by a member of One Sports Digital with the help of AI and reviewed by editorial staff for accuracy.]