Alex Eala reached her first final of the year after beating Argentina’s Lucia Peyre, 6-3, 5-7, 4-6, in the semifinals of the ITF W25 Tecla on Sunday morning (Manila time) in Spain.
The 18-year-old Filipino tennis star will take on Switzerland’s Valentina Ryser in the final on Monday.
Ryser outlasted Spain’s Eva Alvarez in the other semifinals matchup in come-from-behind fashion, 6-7, 7-6, 6-4.
The season so far has been a long road for Eala, absorbing heartbreak after heartbreak in the circuit — including a quarterfinals exit just lust week in Monastir.
The current world no. 266, ranked second in the tournament, started the tournament by beating Great Britain’s Katy Dunne (7-5, 2-6, 6-2) and France’s Nahia Berecoechea (3-6, 6-1, 6-1).
In the quarterfinals, she easily outclassed Mexico’s Victoria Rodriguez, 6-1, 6-3.