FILIPINA tennis star Alex Eala and her Russian partner Oksana Selekhmeteva moved on to the doubles finals of the International Tennis Federation (ITF) World Tennis Tour W25 Platja D'Aro with an impressive 6-3, 6-1 rout of Isabelle Haverlag and Suzan Lamens of the Netherlands on Friday night in Spain.
It was a dominant showing by the 15-year old and her 18-year old partner as they made short work of their opponents, wrapping the match up in a mere 53 minutes. While this is Eala’s very first appearance in a doubles final on the professional stage, she is no stranger to success in a doubles competition, having claimed the Australian Open junior girls’ doubles title last year.
Eala and Selekhmetevaf found themselves trailing early, 0-2, but recovered and took the lead at 3-2, thanks to an accurate backhand shot from Eala. They would go on to win three of the next four games to nab the first set, 6-3.
Eala and Selekhmeteva then took full control of the second set, which they led, 5-0, before Haverlag and Lamens even got on the board. Eala then finished the match with a backhand that her opponent could not handle, handing them the second set, 6-1, and the ticket to the finals where they would battle the pair of Oana Georgeta Simion of Romania and Ustina Mikulskyte of Lithuania. (JNP)