alex ira Until early Thursday morning Philippine time, she assured her Filipino fans that it would be no mistake to stay up late to watch her performance.
In fact, the world No. 45 made every minute of it worth his while, defying an impressive fightback from a set down and a commanding 4-0 lead to win a hard-fought battle. 2-6, 6-4, 7-6(5) victory That’s all Aliaksandra Sasnovich In the process, he reached the quarterfinals of the Mubadala Abu Dhabi Open.
It felt like a repeat of her impressive comeback against the No. 16 seed at the landmark 2025 U.S. Open. clara torsonand was losing 5-1 in the third set.
It was the Filipino sensation’s second straight run to the last eight after reaching the same stage in her home country at the inaugural Philippine Women’s Open last week, but her loss to the eventual champion dashed her dreams and that of almost everyone in attendance. Camila Osorio.
On Wednesday, Eara struggled to penetrate Sasnovic’s passes early on and was unable to get breaks as the Belarusian made plays from the baseline. Sasnovic’s aggressiveness gave the winner a lopsided 31-18 lead in the first set, while Ila’s own serve wavered under pressure, with two double faults in her third service game.
The second set started in a similar fashion, with Sasnovic taking the lead with an early break, but Ila quickly responded with a break of her own to regain stability. From there, the set settled into a rhythm of routine holds.
Still, Ila found himself knocking on the door, creating six break points in the sixth game and an additional chance in the eighth, only to be dismissed each time.
That persistence finally paid off in the 10th game. Serving at 5-4, Sasnovic wobbled just enough for Ila to take advantage and made a perfectly timed decisive break to tie the match and claim a decisive third set.
Just when momentum seemed to be tilting towards Ila, Sasnovic regained control at the start of the deciding match, taking a commanding 4-0 lead with fierce returns and early ball strikes.
Ila held serve to avoid a bagel and briefly regained his composure, but Sasnovic continued to apply pressure and looked ready to pull away.
Eala finally found a breakthrough in the sixth game, securing the first break of the set to cut the deficit to 4-2 and bring life back into the match. However, any hopes of a sustained comeback were briefly ended in the next match as Sasnovic broke again to take a 5-2 lead and earn a serve-for-the-match opportunity.
Refusing to fold, Ila dug deep in the eighth game of overtime, saving a match point and severing the momentum with a tenacious hold. From there, the beliefs took over.
The Filipino rallied in three straight games to surge to 6-5, turning what looked like a near-certain defeat into a dramatic late cliffhanger. Sasnovic finally stopped the run in the 12th game.
The tie-break sawawed, with Sasnovic making the first mini-break to take a 5-4 lead. However, Ila’s three consecutive points sealed the victory.
After Eala is the second seed Ekaterina Alexandrova With the quarter-finals scheduled for Thursday night, those who survive the Round of 16 tie may get to see their new local heroine in action twice within 24 hours.