Eala thunders to Round-of-64 match with Swiatek

MANILA, Philippines — Alex Eala arranged another showdown with world No. 2 Iga Swiatek as the Filipina ace dispatched Bulgarian top player Victoriya Tomova, 6-3, 6-2,  in the opening round of the Madrid Open yesterday.

Eala broke back after going 1-2 down in the first set and fought relentless from then on, hacking out an emphatic win to set up a second-round showdown with Swiatek.

The Filipina is a wildcard bet while Swiatek is the second seed automatically drawn into the Round-of-64 of the WTA 1000 tourney she won last year.

From a game down in the first frame, Eala yielded just three more games in dominating Tomova.