Third time is the charm for Alex Eala, as she claimed her first victory over Tereza Valentová on the WTA Tour with a 6-4, 7-6 (7) victory in the Hong Kong Open round of 16 on Thursday evening at Victoria Park Centre Court.
This comes after the Filipina tennis star twice lost against the Czech last year in the Japan Women's Open and in the Qatar Open earlier this year.
Eala faced early pressure on serve, as Valentová earned a break point in the opening game. However, the 21-year-old lefty stayed composed, responding with three consecutive points to secure the hold.
She quickly carried that momentum onto the return, putting Valentová under pressure in the second game and converting her first break point to take a 2-0 lead.
The Czech then threatened to get back into the set, moving ahead 40-15 in Eala's next service game. But the Filipina once again showed her resilience behind the serve, using an effective first serve and aggressive forehand to win four straight points and consolidate the break.
Eala thus built an early 3-0 advantage, overcoming two challenging service games to take control of the opening set.
After trading three consecutive holds from the fourth through sixth games, Eala's serve came under renewed pressure in the seventh. A double fault from the world No. 17 gave Valentová an opening to mount a comeback, and the Czech capitalized after a lengthy battle, converting her seventh break-point opportunity of the match to cut the deficit at 4-3.
Having trailed 4-1, Valentová followed up her first break of the match with a comfortable hold to complete a three-game surge and level the opening set at 4-4.
The 19-year-old then continued to put Eala under pressure, earning three break-point opportunities in the ninth game as the Filipina struggled with a series of unforced errors.
Yet, Eala once again found a way to steady herself amid the pressure. After four deuces, the world No. 17 eventually held serve to regain the lead at 5-4.
That crucial hold proved to be a turning point, as Eala carried the momentum onto the return and broke Valentová to love in the following game. The Filipina thus closed out the opening set, 6-4, reclaiming control after seeing her early advantage disappear.
One of the biggest differences in the opening set was Eala's effectiveness on her first serve. The Filipina won 19 points behind her first delivery, nearly doubling Valentová's 10, giving her a crucial edge in holding serve and navigating the Czech's return pressure.
The second set opened with both players finding greater consistency on serve, as four consecutive holds left the score tied at 2-2. Valentová, however, struck first this time, breaking Eala's serve to take a brief 3-2 advantage and put the Filipina under pressure.
Eala responded quickly, breaking back to restore parity before the Czech made it three straight breaks to regain the driver's seat at 4-3.
With both players holding serve in the eighth and ninth games to make it 5-4, Eala found a crucial breakthrough just when Valentová looked poised to extend the set.
The Filipina broke the Czech's serve to move ahead before backing it up with a hold in the 11th game to take a 6-5 advantage. However, Valentová kept her composure to hold serve in the 12th game and force a tiebreak, setting up a tense finish to the second set.
Eala made an emphatic start to the tiebreak, capitalizing on two mini-breaks to race to a commanding 5-0 lead. Valentová, however, refused to concede, stringing together four consecutive points to cut the deficit to 5-4.
The Filipina then moved within two match points, only for the Czech to win back-to-back points and level the tiebreak at 6-6.
With neither player willing to give an inch, the tiebreak remained deadlocked at 7-7. But Eala delivered when it mattered most, producing two outstanding points to finally put away Valentová 9-7, and seal a hard-fought straight sets victory.
In the quarterfinals, Eala will face world No. 81 Antonia Ružić of Croatia, who dispatched Wang Xinyu 6-3, 4-6, 6-2.