Pune – Rising tennis star Alex Eala is on the verge of clinching her first International Tennis Federation (ITF) doubles crown as a professional player in the W50 Pune tournament in India. The 18-year-old Filipino and her Latvian partner, Darja Semenistaja, secured a spot in the final by defeating the Japanese duo of Saki Imamura and Naho Sato in the semifinals with a score of 7-6(5), 6-3 on Friday.
In the upcoming championship match, Eala and Semenistaja are set to face the formidable top-seeded pair, Naiktha Bains of the United Kingdom and Fanni Stollar of Hungary.
This marks Eala’s second appearance in an ITF doubles final since finishing as a runner-up in the $25,000 ITF tournament in Platja d’Aro, Spain, in May 2021. Despite her young age, Eala has already demonstrated her prowess on the court, claiming victory twice in Junior Grand Slam tournaments (2020 Australian Open and 2021 French Open) and securing three ITF junior doubles titles out of five final appearances.
While Eala faced elimination in the W50 Pune singles quarterfinal against her partner Semenistaja (6(6)-7, 0-6), she rebounded with a strong performance in the doubles category.
Her journey to the final included a commanding 6-2, 6-2 win over Stollar in the first round and a decisive 6-1, 6-2 victory against Indian player Zeel Desai before partnering with Semenistaja for the doubles.
