Alex Eala scored her first win on the grass court this year as she defeated Lizette Cabrera of Australia after a hard-fought 2 sets last night, June 10, 2025.
Alex Eala Scores First Grass-Court Win of 2025 in Ilkley Open
Eala, seeded first in the tournament and ranked No. 77 in the world, overcame a slow start against Cabrera, who came out strong on the fast Ilkley courts.
The Aussie took an early 3-1 lead in the opening set, using her powerful serve and variety to unsettle the Filipina. However, Eala showed her trademark resilience, pulling even at 3-3 with consistent play from the baseline.
At 3-all, the 20-year-old Philippine tennis legend had a break opportunity, but Cabrera managed to fend it off and held serve to go up 4-3. Two forehand errors from Cabrera in the following game allowed Eala to draw level again.
Both players held serve through to 5-all, with Cabrera showing strong serving and Eala responding with poise. Cabrera briefly pulled ahead 6-5 by using slices and drop shots to break Eala’s rhythm, but Eala held firm in the next game to force a tiebreak.
The tiebreak started in Eala’s favor, with Cabrera committing three straight errors to give the Filipina a 3-0 lead. Cabrera recovered to even the score at 3-3, but a double fault at 4-all handed the advantage back to Eala.
The Quezon City-born tennis star then rifled a forehand winner down the line to reach set point and closed out the breaker 7-4.
Final Score of Set 1: 7(7)-6(4)
With the opening set under her belt after a tightly contested 70-minute battle, Eala carried her momentum into the second set.
Both players held serve early on, leveling at 1-1 and 2-2, before Eala began to take control. Using her powerful groundstrokes and improved timing on the slick grass, she held serve for 3-2 and then broke Cabrera to take a 4-2 lead.
Eala consolidated the break with another confident hold to move within a game of victory at 5-2. Cabrera fought off two match points in the following game to narrow the gap to 5-3, but Eala kept her composure and served out the match in the next game, clinching the win in one hour and 40 minutes.
Final Score of Set 2: 6-3
Alex Eala to Face Valentina Ryser in Ilkley Open Round of 16
The result marked a significant milestone for Eala as it was her first grass-court win in only her second professional tournament on the surface.
She now advances to the Round of 16, where she will face Switzerland’s Valentina Ryser, ranked No. 230 and unseeded in the draw.
Ryser previously beat Sara Saito of Japan in the Round of 32, 6-0 and 6-4.
