Alex Eala staged a gritty comeback to defeat Aliaksandria Sasnovich of Belarus and advance to the quarterfinals of the WTA 500 Mubadala Abu Dhabi Open early Thursday (Manila time).
Eala, 20, recovered from a 0–4 deficit in the deciding set to pull off a 2-6, 6-4, 7-6(5) victory over the former world top-30 player at the International Tennis Center in Zayed Sports City.
The Filipina world No. 45 needed two hours and 51 minutes to overcome Sasnovich, ranked 105th, setting up a last-eight meeting with second seed Ekaterina Aleksandrova.
“I’m so happy. It really tested my heart,” Eala said in a post-match interview after drawing loud support from Filipino fans in the stands.
Sasnovich, 31, who had upset eighth seed Paola Badosa in the previous round, appeared in control after racing to a 4–0 lead in the third set.
But Eala steadied her baseline game, mixed in timely net approaches and won six of the next seven games to move ahead 6–5, energizing a crowd that repeatedly chanted her name.
Sasnovich held serve to force a tiebreak, taking a 5–4 lead, but Eala closed the match by claiming the final three points, sealing the win with a service winner.
“These are the matches that stay with you,” Eala said after receiving a standing ovation for the comeback.
