HANGZHOU, China – Alex Eala suffered a 1-6, 7-6 (7-5), 3-6 defeat to Chinese top seed Zheng Qinwen but successfully ended the country’s 17-year medal drought in tennis Thursday at the city’s Olympic Tennis Centre here.

Several inches shorter than the Chinese ace, the 5-foot-8 Eala recovered from a sluggish start with a dominant performance in the second set.

Fatigue, however, caught up with her after a double duty Wednesday when she played singles in the morning and mixed doubles later in the day.

As her singles match with an Indian rival, the mixed doubles were also tiring as Eala and first-time partner Francis Alcantara needed three sets to top-seeded pair of Yuki Bhambri and Ankita Ravinderkrishan Raina of India.

Eala stands to win another bronze if she and Alcantara beat their Thai rivals in the quarters.

For a while, Eala, 18, appeared headed to scoring a big upset over her 21-year-old rival after taking a 3-1 lead in the deciding third set in a game she capped with a sizzling return.

But Eala’s magic suddenly disappeared, limited to just four points the rest of the way.

But while Eala was looking tired and weary, the Chinese bet, who is ranked No. 23 in the world, was gaining momentum as she started to bomb the Filipina princess with wicked forehand winners.

Eala was held scoreless in the 8th game and that proved the end of her as Qinwen took a 5-3 advantage. (ai/mnm)

HANGZHOU, China – Alex Eala pulled off one of the biggest comeback wins in tennis history in the Asian Games with a EA0-6, 7-5, 6-0 win over Japanese Kyoka Okamura Wednesday, Sept. 27 that assured Team PH another bronze medal at the Olympic Tennis Centre here.

Eala, seeded No. 4, looked like a beginner in the first set as she committed numerous turnovers – some were basic mistakes – not to mention Okamora’s solid game from the baseline.

She even lost her first serve in the second, giving Okamura a 2-0 lead.

Good thing, Eala found her second win and rallied furiously to win the second set which proved enough to take the fight out of her Japanese rival.

The third set was a different story as it was Eala who dictated the tempo on the way to posting another win that could go down as one of the highlights of a flourishing career.

The victory arranged the 18-year-old Filipina sensation a semis date with top seed Zheng Qinwen of China, who survived a close opening set to beat Park Sohyn of South Korea, 7-6 (4), 6-0.

Qinwen is the very same person who made it to the quarters of the US Open in New York after beating last year’s runner up Ons Jabeur of Tunisia.

While Eala is ranked No. 192, the Chinese top seed is rated No. 23 in the latest ITF rankings.

The last time a country won a medal in the continental showpiece was 17 years ago – courtesy of Cecil Mamiit and Eric Taino who won two bronze medals in the Doha edition.

Her job is not yet done for the day as she and Francis Casey Alcantara are scheduled to battle top seed Yuki Bhambri and Ankita Ravinderkrishan Raina of India in the third round of the mixed doubles event later in the afternoon.
(ai/mnm)

Image Courtesy of Patrick King Perez’s Facebook account

HANGZHOU, China – He’s not a king but taekwondo jin King Patrick Perez is at least a winner.

The 23-year-old Perez took the bragging rights as the first medal winner of Team PH by taking the bronze in the men’s individual poomsae in the 19th Asian Games here.

Combining speed and grace, Perez won his first two rivals in the recognized event before losing to Asia’s No. 2 in Taiwanese Ma Yun Zhong in the semis of the freestyle event at the Lin’an Sports Culture and Exhibition Centre.

The Taiwanese lived up to his status by tallying 7.450 against Perez’s 6.910.
Despite the defeat, Perez, 23, was still a picture of contentment, saying: “I did my very best but I lost to a better player today.”

“I could not believe I won a bronze, I am really happy,” he added.

Philippine Taekwondo Association Secretary-General Rocky Samson is hoping Perez’s bronze medal win will rub off on his teammates, especially in the sparring category.

Perez, a product of La Salle, posted7.700 points to dispatch Souksavanh Chanthilath of Lao People’s Democratic Republic who tallied 7.440 points. Against Nepal’s Limbu Prem Bahadur, Perez put on another spectacular show for 7.560 points and won pulling away after his rival managed only 7.160.

The first casualty in the 12-man taekwondo team was Jocel Lyn Ninobla after facing one of Korean aces in Cha Yeaeun in the Round of 16.

Ninobla performed well, logging 7.560 points but the Korean did more jaw-dropping moves and posted 7.680 to prevail.

On Monday, Sept. 25, SEAG champion Kurt Bryan Barbosa launches his gold medal bid against Uzbek Omonjon Otajonov in the men’s -58kg.

(AI/MNM)