Alex Eala stunned second seed Eva Lys of Germany, 4-6, 6-4, 6-1, in the Round of 16 of the W60 Barcelona Women’s singles tournament at the UP Cornelia-TEC Carles Ferrer Salat in Spain.
Eala got the job done in two hours and four minutes for a spot in the quarterfinals where she will clash with hometown bet Georgina Garcia-Perez, who entered the netfest as a wild card.
The US Open Junior champion is using her European exposure as a buildup for the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou from 23 September to 8 October.
Ranked No. 248 in the world, Eala is slightly favored to keep her winning ways since Garcia-Perez is rated No. 369.
Like Eala, Garcia-Perez had to turn back Finnish bet Anastasia Kulikova, 3-6, 6-0, 6-2, in a separate Round of 16 encounter to earn the right to face Eala.
Eala’s last title win took place last June.