FILIPINO tennis ace Alex Eala outdueled German AnnaLena Friedsam, 7-5, 4-6, 6-2, in Petange, Luxembourg TO ENTER THE W40 KYOTEC OPEN fiNAL ON SATURDAY NIGHT, November 18 (Manila time).

After taking down world no. 114 Friedsam in the semifinal match that dragged to two hours and 30 minutes, No. 204 Eala was set to face No. 101 Océane Dodin in the championship round on Sunday, gunning for her fifth singles professional title.

Seeded third in the tournament, Dodin scored a 6-1, 6-3 triumph over unseeded Belgian Hanne Vandewinkle in the other semifinal bracket.

Ninth seed Eala certainly had to earn her ticket to the final as she figured in a back-and-forth battle against fourth seed Friedsam, especially in the first set.

The 18-year-old Eala managed to win five games first, but the 29-year-old Friedsam snatched the 10th game to level the count. The Filipino displayed great composure, though, as she held serve in the following game to ultimately draw first blood.

Eala and Friedsam were back at it again in the second set that saw the former break the latter’s set in the eighth game to tie at 4-4. Friedsam proved steadier in the next two games to win the set this time and force a decider.

Staying composed, Eala, who scored a total of seven aces and four break points, flipped the tight battle into practically a lopsided affair in the third frame as she cruised to the win that put her on the cups of winning three titles this year.

Eala ruled the W25 Yecla in Spain last May and the W25 Roehampton in Great Britain last August.

While she wasn’t as successful in the 19th Asian Games last September, Eala managed to deliver the Philippines’ first Asiad medal since 2006 after winning a bronze in the singles division, where she yielded to the highest-ranked opponent she ever faced yet in world No. 23 Chinese Zheng Qinwen in the semifinals.

Eala also finished with a bronze medal in the mixed doubles event with Francis Casey Alcantara.