Alex Eala beats Diane Parry, advances to Ningbo Open second round

Alexandra “Alex” Eala defeated France’s Diane Parry, 6-3, 6-1, on Monday to advance to the second round of the Ningbo Open in China.

The Round of 32 victory marked Eala’s first win in this year’s Asian swing following early exits in Singapore and Wuhan.

Eala and Parry battled closely in the opening set, with the two tied at 3-3 before the Filipina won the next three games to take the set.

Carrying her momentum into the second set, Eala won the first four games to establish control before Parry broke through. Eala, however, regained control to eventually take the next two games and seal the victory.

"She’s had a really good year so congrats to her for the year she’s done and [I'm] really happy to be in the second round," Eala said in the post-match interview.

"Thank you everyone, maraming salamat mga Pinoy, xie xie… Thank you so much for the support. It really makes my job very fun even in the difficult moments so I’m very happy to be here."

Eala, currently ranked world No. 20, will face the winner of the match between Yulia Putintseva and Diana Shnaider in the second round.

Alex Eala's Season recap (singles)

Asian swing

• Wuhan Open — Round of 64
• Singapore Tennis Open — Round of 16

North American swing

• US Open — Round of 32
• Cincinnati Open — Round of 32
• Canadian Open — Round of 16
• DC Open — Champion

Grass-court swing

• Wimbledon (Grand Slam) — Round of 16
• Bad Homburg Open (WTA 500) — Round of 32
• Berlin Tennis Open (WTA 500) — Semifinals
• HSBC Championships (WTA 500) — Round of 16
• Birmingham Open (WTA 125) — Champion

Clay-court swing

• French Open (Grand Slam) — Round of 128
• Italian Open (WTA 1000) — Round of 32
• Madrid Open (WTA 1000) — Round of 64
• Stuttgart Open (WTA 500) — Round of 32
• Linz Open (WTA 500) — Round of 16

Sunshine Swing

• Miami Open (WTA 1000) — Round of 16
• Indian Wells Open (WTA 1000) — Round of 16

Middle East Swing

• Dubai Tennis Championships (WTA 1000) — Quarterfinals
• Qatar Open (WTA 1000) — Round of 64
• Abu Dhabi Open (WTA 500) — Quarterfinals

Philippine Women’s Open (WTA 125) — Quarterfinals

Australian Swing

• Australian Open (Grand Slam) — Round of 128
• ASB Classic (WTA 250) — Semifinals

—JKC, GMA News