Alexandra Eala played a lot of confidence and played enough steady tennis to beat Mary Stoiana, 6-1, 6-2 in their first round match of the US Open Tuesday night in New York.
The atmosphere inside Louis Armstrong Court was electric as usual as thousands of Filipino fans waving flags and loudly cheering for the Filipina tennis star. The opening-round match felt more like a Manny Pacquiao championship fight than a tennis match.
The 21-year-old Filipina star showed once again why she has become one of the biggest draws in tennis. Her popularity has filled stadiums around the world, and New York was no different. Tournament organizers made her first-round match the featured night session, and Eala gave the crowd plenty to celebrate, beating American qualifier Mary Stoiana 6-1, 6-2.
It was their first meeting, and Eala had to settle her nerves right away. She faced a break point in the opening game after a double fault and an errant forehand. But with the crowd behind her, she stayed calm and held serve.
That was all Eala needed to find her rhythm.
She broke Stoiana in the next game with a series of strong returns, then held serve to take a 3-0 lead. Her serving kept Stoiana guessing, while a perfectly timed drop shot added to her growing advantage.
Stoiana, 23, struggled to handle the pressure and the noise. Eala broke again in the fourth game after a long exchange from the baseline ended with Stoiana putting a forehand into the net. Eala soon moved ahead 5-0.
Stoiana finally got on the scoreboard by holding serve, but Eala quickly ended the set. She served it out at love, sending the Filipino crowd into another celebration.
The second set was much closer.
Stoiana came out with more confidence, holding serve to open the set and putting more pressure on Eala's serve. At 1-0, Eala faced two break points after another double fault. But she dug in during a long baseline rally and saved both chances, earning a huge roar from the crowd as she leveled the set.
Stoiana continued to fight. She came forward aggressively and used a sharp move to the net to take a 2-1 lead. In the next game, she again had a chance to break after a long rally.
But Eala refused to give in.
She saved the break point and held for 2-2.
The fifth game became the turning point. Stoiana was playing some of her best tennis of the night, but she made a few costly mistakes on serve and Eala took advantage, breaking to move ahead 3-2.
Eala then held for 4-2 after a thrilling exchange at the net.
The seventh game was another battle. There were three deuces and several beautiful drop shots as both players fought for every point. Stoiana tried to attack Eala's serve with aggressive returns, but she eventually missed the line, giving Eala another break and a 5-2 lead.
Serving for the match, Eala briefly found herself in trouble at 0-30. Stoiana kept fighting and hit a brilliant drop shot to earn a break point at 30-40.
Once again, Eala stayed calm.
She fought her way back to deuce and then earned her first match point. She converted it immediately.
The crowd erupted.
After just over an hour of play, Eala had completed a convincing 6-1, 6-2 victory and earned her place in the second round.
For the Filipino fans who filled Louis Armstrong Court, it was another memorable night watching their young star shine on one of tennis's biggest stages.
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