Alexandra Eala kept her Auckland charge moving with a sharp, no-nonsense win on Friday, brushing aside Poland’s Magda Linette 6-3 6-2 to reach the ASB Classic semifinals.
In swirling wind and against a familiar foe, the fourth seed delivered her most complete performance of the week. It was the third meeting between the pair and the first time Eala emerged victorious, exorcising past heartaches with composure and control in one hour and 37 minutes.
From the outset, Eala set the tempo. She absorbed the bluster, redirected pace and denied Linette the steady baseline exchanges she thrives on. The fifth seed was never allowed to settle, her rhythm repeatedly broken by Eala’s clean hitting and disciplined court coverage.
“I’m happy with how I handled the external factors, the wind, and playing Magda has always been difficult for me. She’s a very solid player, very consistent,” Eala said in a post-match interview published on the ASB Classic website.
At 20, Eala played with a maturity that belied both her age and the conditions. She managed momentum swings calmly, tightened her focus when needed and closed the door without fuss, a trait that has come to define her rise.
The victory extends a strong run in Auckland, where confidence has been building match by match. It echoes previous stretches of momentum, from her breakthrough run to the semifinals in Miami last year to her finals appearance in Eastbourne on the eve of Wimbledon.
Eala now moves into the last four to face Wang Xinyu, her form sharp, her belief intact and the Auckland wind no longer an obstacle, just another variable she has learned to master.
Later on Friday, Eala will also team up with 18-year-old American Iva Jovic in the women’s doubles semifinals against China’s Xu Yifan and Yang Zhaoxuan.
