ALEX Eala had to buck a slow start to beat Fil-Australian Lizette Cabrera, 7-6 (4), 6-3, at the start of the Lexus Ilkley Open in Great Britain on Tuesday (early Wednesday (Philippine time, June 11).

The battle of former doubles partners needed one hour and 46 minutes to complete with the 20-year-old Eala needing to dig deep into her arsenal before sealing her first victory.

Coming off a series of setbacks, including an early exit in the Birmingham Open last week, Eala, ranked No. 77 in the world,

Eala started poorly, allowng Caberera to jump to an early 3-1 lead. Eala tied the match at 3-all but Cabrera seized the lead back, 5-3.

Eala again staged a fightback, forcing a 5-all standoff before forcing a tiebreak.

Eala’s momentum carried into the second set, totally dominating Cabrera, who tallied seven aces to the Filipina’s two.

Next up for Eala is a second-round duel with qualifier Valentina Ryser of Switzerland.

Ryser advanced to the second by nipping Japanese Sara Saito, 6-0, 6-4.

Eala and Ryser meeting for the third time. In their first meeting at W25 Yecla in Spain two years ago, Eala scored a dominant 6-3, 7-5, win.

The 24-year-old Ryser exacted revenge in their second encounter, beating Eala in three sets in the second round of the W75 Trnava in Slovakia just last March.

Ryser is ranked No. 230 in the world with seven International Tennis Federation (ITF) singles titles. Eala has five ITF titles.(CCM)

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• #Alex Eala
• #Lizette Cabrera
• #Lexus Ilkley Open
• #Great Britain
• #Fil-Australian
• #Valentina Ryssr
• #Switzerland