TENNIS – Teenage tennis star Alexandra Eala helped lift the Philippines to a resounding 3-0 win over Qatar yesterday in the Billie Jean King Cup Asia/Oceania Group III 2024 tennis tournament, currently being hosted by the kingdom at the Bahrain Tennis Federation (BTF) courts in Isa Town.
Nineteen-year-old Eala, who is ranked 158th in the world, cruised past Mubaraka Al Naimi 6-0, 6-0 in a cool 42 minutes to claim the second of three matches in their Pool B tie of the tournament’s preliminary stage.
In the opening singles encounter, Shaira Hope Rivera defeated Hind Al Mudahka 6-2, 6-2 to give the Filipinos a strong start. Then, after Eala’s triumph, the pair of Marian Jade Capadocia and Khim Iglupas sealed the sweep with a 6-3, 6-0 victory over Khadija Gassama and Dana Khalifa.
Their second straight 3-0 result put the Philippines, coached by Denise Dy, atop their group standings with an unbeaten record and with one tie remaining. They had earlier beat Guam 3-0 and will next take on Nepal.
The Nepalis have also won both their head-to-heads so far in Pool B after defeating Guam 3-0 yesterday.
Sunira Thapa outplayed Amelie Helene Perez-Terlaje 6-0, 6-0 in the first singles clash, and then Abhilasha Bista followed it up with a come-from-behind 6-7 (3), 7-5, 6-2 win over Fremont Gibson. Bista and Prakriti Shrestha then closed it out for Nepal with a 6-1, 6-1 triumph over Guam’s Gibson and Charlayne Espinosa.
Nepal went to second in the group ahead of Qatar and Guam, who both suffered their second successive defeats.
In other action yesterday, Macau and Northern Mariana Islands opened their campaigns on a high note.
Macau outclassed Brunei 3-0 while Northern Mariana Islands defeated Vietnam 2-1.
In Pool D, which is composed of five teams, Tajikistan moved to solo first place following a 2-1 win over Bhutan, while the Maldives claimed their first triumph with a 3-0 sweep of Iraq.
Hosts Bahrain are in Pool C and they are back on the BTF’s hard courts today when they take on fellow-Gulf side Saudi Arabia. Both teams lost their opening fixtures against Laos and Turkmenistan, respectively, and will need to win today to get their tournament bids back on track.
Elsewhere today, Turkmenistan and Laos lock horns in the other Pool C encounter, Macau take on Vietnam and Northern Mariana Islands face Brunei in Pool A, and the Maldives face Bhutan and Myanmar take on Iraq in Pool D.
The Billie Jean King Cup is a leading international competition between national teams in women’s tennis. The kingdom is hosting a zonal group for the second straight year, and 17 participating nations are playing for promotion to the higher tier for 2025.
patrick@gdnmedia.bh
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