Eala, Svitolina cross paths anew in Mubadala DC quarters

Sports

ALEX Eala is on some sort of a revenge tour in the Mubadala DC Open after defeating former tormentors in the first tworounds.

Now in the quarterfinals, the Filipina tennis star will no longer seek revenge but a repeat as she will be taking on 10 Elina Svitolina on Saturday morning (Philippine time), Aug. 1.

The two athletes met in the in the quarterfinal round of the Berlin Open last month with the wold No. 28 Eala beating the world No. 10 Svitolina, 6-3, 6-4.

The 21-year-old Eala moved a win away from the semifinals after scoring vengeful wins in the early rounds.

She started her campaign with a 4-6, 6-4, 6-1 win over Zheng Qinwen. The victory avenged Eala’s loss to Zheng in the semifinal round of the 2023 Asian Games in Hangzhou, China.

Eala kept her campaign alive by taking down defending champion Lyle Fernandez in the Round of 16, 6-2, 7-6. The straight sets win came after Eala suffered a 1-6, 4-6 defeat to the Filipino-Canadian in the Stuttgart Open earlier this year.

The 31-year-old Svitolina, on the other hand, reached the quarterdinals by dominating Polina Kudermetova, 7-6(4), 6-4, in the Round of 16 on Friday morning (Philippine time).

The winner between the Eala-Svitolina duel will face either Elisabetta Cocciaretto or World No. 13 Naomi Osaka.(CCM)