Eala out for revenge vs Czech

MANILA, Philippines — A second straight quarterfinal berth is at stake as Alex Eala tries to finally score one on Czech ace Tereza Valentova today in the WTA250 Prudential Hong Kong Tennis Open at the Victoria Park Tennis Stadium.

Valentova is part of the “Czech curse” that has hounded Eala in her career. She went 0-13 against Czech opponents  – with Valentova responsible for a pair of setbacks – before finally solving the mystery puzzle and beating  Nikola Bartunkova,  in the finale at that, on her way to her celebrated triumph at Birmingham earlier this year.

The 19-year-old Valentova defeated Eala via straight sets when they faced off at the Japan Open last year and the Qatar Open this year.

And that should serve as enough motivation for the 21-year-old Filipina pride, the second seed in Hong Kong who earned a shot at the lower-ranked but still formidable Valentova (No. 85) after an easy 6-4, 6-3 win over last-minute replacement Emerson Jones of Australia (No. 132).

Eala had to face a different foe in Tuesday’s first round after the withdrawal of her original rival, No. 59 Alycia Parks of the United States, due to a shoulder injury.

On her fifth straight WTA Tour stint in a month and sixth overall including the 20th Asian Games, Eala marched into battle in Hong Kong fresh from a Last 8 finish in the WTA500 Toray Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo.