Eala zaps Lee, makes quarters

I had a good comeback today although my opponent retired in the third set.

Alex Eala beat Ya-Hsuan Lee of Chinese Taipei to advance to the quarterfinals of the W60 Vitoria-Gasteiz women’s singles event at the Peña Vitoriana Tennis Club in Spain.

Eala booked a 1-6, 6-2, 4-1 victory over the 27-year-old Taiwanese who retired after 95 minutes of action due to injury to seal her spot to the Last Eight of this tourney that stakes a cash prize of $60,000.

But prior the retirement, the 17-year-old Filipino scholar of the Rafael Nadal Tennis Academy was on track for a major comeback after Lee established a 5-1 lead.

“I had a good comeback today although my opponent retired in the third set. Wishing her a speedy recovery. I play in the quarterfinals tomorrow (Friday),” Eala, who ranks No. 217 in the latest Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) ranking, said.

Eala is clashing with Eden Silva of Great Britain at press time for a chance to make it to the semifinals.

Silva, who is at No. 352 in the WTA ranking, is fresh from beating hometown bet Lucia Cortez Llorca, 6-2, 6-3 in a match that only lasted for 70 minutes.

While Eala is on a roll, her older brother Miko bombed out in the second round of the M15 Monastir at the Hotel Skanes Family Monastir in Tunisia.

Miko, a 19-year-old Penn State standout, was swept by third seed Robert Strombachs of Germany, 5-7, 1-6 to stay in the hunt for his first men’s singles title in the professional ranks.

Together with his partner, Abehdallah Shelbayh of Jordan, Miko was also sent packing after absorbing a 4-6, 4-6 loss to the Turkish pair of Anis Ghorbel and Aziz Ouakaa in the men’s doubles event.