Joker Alexandra Eala from the Philippines amazed the world number two IGA Swiatek at the Miami Open on Wednesday. (Al Bello)
Alexandra Eala, a 19 year old Philippines joker, produced a huge upheaval at the Miami Open on Wednesday, beating the world number two IGA Swiatek 6-2 7-5 to reach the semi-finals.
Classified 140th in the world, Eala, the first woman in her country to reach the last eight WTA 1000 tournament, took advantage of an unusual mediocre display of Swiatek, keeping her goal while she was fighting 4-2 in the second set.
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Eala broke the post for the eighth and last time when Swiatek was used to stay in the 6-5 match in the second set and looked amazed as she was fighting to contain her emotions.
“I’m just in disbelief at the moment. It’s so surreal,” she said in court.
“I am so happy and so blessed to be able to compete with such a player on this scene,” said Eala, who now beat three Grand Chelem winners on her itinerary to the last four in Miami – having treated Jelena Ostapenko and Madison Keys before upsetting the quadruple French Swiatic champion.
“I trust my photos and I have an excellent team to tell me that I can do it,” she said.
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Eala moved to Spain at the age of 13 to join the Rafael Nadal Academy in Mallorca and Toni Nadal, the Spanish uncle and former coach, was in his box for the match.
“It meant a lot that he presented himself here. It showed the confidence he had in me and the confidence that the Academy had in me,” she said.
Eala will face the winner of the quarter -final on Wednesday between Emma Raducanu British and the American Jessica Pegula.
“Just because I won this match or the one before does not make the next less difficult. If something will be more difficult, it will therefore take everything I have,” said Eala.
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Swiatek would be looking forward to going to the clay season after conceding that she had been far from her usual level.
“I am sure I was not playing my best game and I had the impression that my forehand collapsed a little, so it was not comfortable and Alexandra, for sure, used her chances and pushed me, so it is sure that she deserves to win this match,” she said.
“I don’t want to think about it too long. It’s nice to learn losses, but there are other things to come and I am happy that we were going to play on Clay.”
SEV / JS
