Rising Filipina tennis star Alex Eala carried her momentum from her recent WTA 125 triumph in Guadalajara, sweeping past French qualifier Jasmine Mansouri in the opening round of the WTA 250 São Paulo Open on Tuesday, September 9.

Eala, entering the tournament ranked No. 61, showed her class from the first game, saving multiple break points with fearless baseline hitting.

She raced to a 4-0 lead, highlighted by a crisp drop shot winner on game point.

A routine hold extended her advantage to 5-0 before she closed out the opening set 6-0 in just 32 minutes.

The 20-year-old continued her dominance in the second set, quickly going up 3-0.

Mansouri managed to hold serve twice to get on the board, but Eala’s consistency and power proved too much.

Whenever pressured, the Filipina produced clutch winners to stop any comeback attempt, sealing the match 6-0, 6-2.

After the victory, Eala shared her excitement about competing in Brazil for the first time, saying she was very happy to play in South America for the first time with many in the crowd, including Filipinos, supporting her.

With the win, Eala advances to the round of 16, where she will face Argentine Julia Riera (World No. 188) on Thursday, September 11. (ABS-CBN News)