By Jean Malanum
MANILA – Filipino wild card Alexandra Eala kept her winning form at the Berlin Open, pulling off a 7-5, 6-4 upset over World No. 2 Elena Rybakina to reach the quarterfinals of the WTA 500 event on the grass of the Steffi Graf Stadium in Germany on Thursday (Friday, Manila time).
“I’m still shaking, and I was shaking on match point, too. But I’m really happy with today, of course. It could have gone either way. I think there were really tight moments in both sets, and she’s an amazing player. She’s the one to beat, so I’m happy to have been able to share the court with her again,” said the 21-year-old Filipino in a news release posted on the WTA website.
Eala, ranked No. 35 in the world, suffered a 4-6, 3-6 loss to 2022 Wimbledon champion Rybakina at the Italian Open last month in their first WTA Tour meeting.
Eala, the 2025 Southeast Asian Games singles gold medalist, will next face No. 6 seed Ukrainian Elina Svitolina, who clobbered German Eva Lys, 6-3, 6-2.
Eala, winner of the WTA 125 Birmingham Open on June 7, made it to the second round after beating HSBC Championships (Queen’s Club Championships) champion Donna Vekic, 7-5, 6-4.
Meanwhile, No. 1 seed Aryna Sabalenka downed Ekaterina Alexandrova, 6-4, 6-4, to set up a duel with 2023 Wimbledon junior finalist Nikola Bartunkova, who ousted Elise Martens, 6-1, 6-4.
Also advancing were former champion Jessica Pegula, Paula Badosa, Madison Keys, and Linda Noskova. (PNA)
