Eala beats Osaka, reaches first WTA 500 final
Alex Eala of the Philippines beat Naomi Osaka 6:4, 6:2 in the Washington WTA 500 semifinals to reach her first final at this level, where she will face Jessica Pegula.
Philippines' top-ranked tennis player Alex Eala advanced to her first WTA 500 final by defeating Japan's leading player Naomi Osaka 6:4, 6:2 in the semifinals in Washington. Osaka, a former world No. 1, had been considered the favourite, with bookmakers offering odds of 1.59 on her victory.
Eala, ranked 28th, broke Osaka's serve in the ninth game of the opening set after four attempts. She then dominated the second set, closing out the match with a convincing 6:2 scoreline.
The statistics underlined Eala's superiority: she won 71% of points behind her first serve compared to Osaka's 63%, and 79% of second-serve points versus 48% for the Japanese player. Eala collected 62 points in total to Osaka's 44. She converted 4 of 12 break opportunities, while Osaka managed 1 of 4. The ace and double fault counts were 0-1 for Eala and 5-5 for Osaka.
This is Eala's second significant final appearance; last year she lost the Eastbourne WTA 250 title match. Earlier this season, she surprised Australian Open organisers with the crowds of fans supporting her.
In the Washington final, Eala will face the top-ranked American, Jessica Pegula, who is No. 3 in the world.
