Top seed Belinda Bencic got off to a winning start at the Prudential Hong Kong Tennis Open last night while Filipina rising star Alexandra Eala advanced after Katie Boulter retired injured during the featured match of the night.
Former Olympic champion Bencic, coming off a victory in the Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo, defeated Aliaksandra Sasnovich of Belarus 6-3, 6-4 as she continued her remarkable comeback to the sport since becoming a mother.
But the loudest cheers of the night were for Eala, who progressed to the last 16 after Boulter retired hurt while trailing 6-4, 2-1 on Centre Court at the Victoria Park Tennis Centre.
Eala had taken the last two games of the match, holding serve at love after breaking Boulter in the British star's only service game in the second set.
"I think this time of the year is a tough moment for a lot of players, physically and mentally, being the end of the season … I hope Katie can take the time to recover and look back at her season proudly,” the 20-year-old Filipina said.
Eala had been attracting plenty of attention during the WTA 250 tournament, supported loudly by Filipino residents in Hong Kong and others who made the two-hour flight from the Philippines to cheer on the fresh-faced star.
Third seed Victoria Mboko awaits Eala in the next round after the powerful Canadian teenager outlasted New Zealand's Talia Gibson 6-7 (2/7), 6-1, 6-4.
Hong Kong aslo enjoyed a moment in the limelight, with Eudice Chong reaching the last 16 after years of frustration,beating the Netherlands' Suzan Lamens to join Canadian second seed Leylah Fernandez, Chinese veteran Zhang Shuai and Russian Anna Kalinskaya in the next round.
Swiss star Bencic, meanwhile, continued to display top form, days after winning in Tokyo for her second title of a season that started with her way back down in the rankings following her layoff.
A day after a quick trip to Hong Kong Disneyland where she and her family spent two hours viewing the giant pandas, Bencic was all business on Centre Court as she dispatched Sasnovich. Bencic will now play China's Wang Yafan for a place in the quarter-finals.
