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| Alex Eala scored her first doubles win in Abu Dhabi alongside fellow Southeast Asian star Janice Tjen. Richard Esguerra (file photo) |
MANILA--The Southeast Asian tandem of Alex Eala and Janice Tjen prevailed in a heated Mubadala Abu Dhabi Open doubles showdown against Fil-Canadian Leylah Fernandez and partner Kristina Mladenovic, 7-5, 3-6, 10-6, early Wednesday (Philippine Time).
Eala and Tjen, the top two women's tennis stars from the ASEAN region right now, got the upper hand after clinching a tight Set 1, only for Fernandez and Mladenovic to take Set 2 more dominantly.
Eala and Tjen began Set 3 on a roll, racing to a 4-1 lead, but Fernandez and Mladenovic fought back to make it 6-all.
Eala and Tjen sealed the match after scoring four straight points in the end.
Fernandez and Mladenovic struggled with their serves in Set 3, committing three double faults that helped Eala and Tjen secure some separation.
Fernandez and Mladenovic ended up with six double faults compared to only two from Eala and Tjen, none in the race-to-10 decider.
Eala and Tjen also showed their prowess in returning Fernandez and Mladenovic's serves, winning 16 second-serve points compared to their opponents' five.
The doubles loss marked the end of Fernandez's stay in Abu Dhabi as the singles sixth-seed fell to McCartney Kessler, 3-6, 2-6, on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, the doubles win assures that Tjen will stay for a while after she lost to fifth-seeded Liudmila Samsonova in their own singles clash, 2-6, 2-6.
In the meantime, Eala will turn her attention to her singles Round of 16 clash against Aliaksandra Sasnovich, scheduled for Wednesday night.
