Dubai, UAE – World No4 Coco Gauff cruised into the semi-finals of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships on Thursday night, comfortably overcoming both a passionate partisan crowd and the object of its affection, Filipina sensation Alexandra Eala. She will meet Elina Svitolina, the two-time Dubai champion who dumped her out of the Australian Open unceremoniously in straight sets last month.
Gauff, a bona-fide American superstar and the No3 seed this week, had played – by her own admission – pretty poorly in her Round of 16 win over Elise Mertens on Wednesday, hitting 16 double-faults and being forced to save three match-points. Yet while she did not quite bring her A-game to the packed-out Dubai Duty Free Tennis Stadium against Eala – eight double-faults saw to that – such was the gap in quality with the World No47, she was still able to see off her popular Pinoy opponent 6-0, 6-2 inside 68 minutes.
Alex Eala bows to Coco Gauff, exits Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships————–SUPPLIED IMAGE
Eala had looked tentative from the first game, quickly losing her first service match and, despite Gauff firing off the first of three first-set double-faults, the 20-year-old Filipina was unable to capitalise, making the wrong decision, finding the net, hitting long. In the third game, she saved a breakpoint but then volleyed wide at deuce to hand advantage to her opponent, who gratefully won the next point to go 3-0.
In an era when sports followers are often accused of being fair-weather fans, supporting only in times of success, the Kabayan crowd were commendable. They have passionately followed Eala’s every step this week in the emirate, and against Gauff they never stopped supporting. Printed posters and handwritten signs waved – including one reading “UAE: United for Alex Eala” – and even as their hero faced a first-set bagel, they cheered every point as if their sheer vocals alone could turn the tide.
They, of course, could not.
The second set continued in the same vein as Gauff added two more breaks to take her winning run to 10 consecutive games. Eala did finally get on the scorecard at 4-1, and it came after a prolonged point that was punctuated with an increasingly loud din from the crowd – both players battling and shuttling from baseline to net and back. Eala, seeing her 0 on the scoreboard change to a 1, raised an arm in the air, sending the crowd wild. Spurred on by the shouts yet completely against the run of play, the World No47 then broke to go 2-4, but any hope of a miracle from Manila was short-lived as Gauff broke back and consolidated.
“I could have served a little better, but I made it in when it mattered,” Gauff said. “Alex is a tough competitor. Even when I was up, I knew she could come back at any given moment, I’ve seen her do it before.”
Addressing the raucous fans directly, she added: “I know you were mostly supporting Alex, but it is great to be on a crowded court. I’ve played this tournament many years and to see this stadium full means a lot. Sometimes it’s tough when you’re playing against a ‘home crowd’, but I think it’s great for the sport, so keep being enthusiastic and keep rooting for your player.”
Only a year separates the two, yet while Eala won the 2022 US Open Junior title, Gauff won the US Open proper 12 months later. She then added a second Grand Slam crown – at Roland Garros – last year and her record against players her junior now stands at 14-2. Experience counts, and Eala will benefit from her Dubai defeat.
“Obviously, I think the gap between us was pretty prominent,” said Eala, who is expected to rise to No32 in the world when the WTA publishes its latest rankings on Monday. “That’s not to say that I’m so far out of reach from these players. I think this match was… I mean, the score says a lot, but I think I’m not so disappointed. I keep my head up. I feel good about the whole week, and how I’ve been doing. So, the biggest takeaway for me, honestly, is that I’m on the right path.”
Gauff will face Svitolina in Friday’s final-four after the Ukrainian came back from a set-down to beat surprise package Antonia Ruzic. Svitolina is the last player – man or woman – to win back-to-back titles in Dubai, and her march to a third crown goes on following a determined display. It would mark her first title in Dubai since becoming a mother and would take the 31-year-old level with Venus Williams, one Dubai title behind record-holder Justine Henin.
It looked like just hours after Eala’s fairytale had ended, another might take shape, this time with Ruzic as protagonist. The diminutive Croatian had lost in the first round of qualifying last Friday, but battled through to the quarterfinals as a Lucky Loser. On Wednesday, her good fortune had saw her past top seed Elena Rybakina, who retired due to illness.
Under the lights of Centre Court Thursday, Ruzic showed once again the energy and skillset that had beaten Emma Raducanu and Anastasia Zakharova in the earlier rounds. Ranked World No67, the 23-year-old looked determined to seize her opportunity, grabbing a dominant 6-3 first-set victory.
Yet luck can only take one so far and Ruzic’s early success seemed to stir her opponent, who awoke and wasted no time responding to ultimately prevail 3-6, 6-2, 6-3.
“Antonia played unbelievable in the first set,” Svitolina said. “I had to really find the small holes in her game. I was very happy in the way I could bounce back in the second. Then I think I finally found my game in the third.”
Asked what changed to prompt the turnaround, she replied: “I was more aggressive on the return and I was a bit more calm in a way of building the point. She gave me little opportunities on her serve. I was also serving really well; I think my serve really saved me; it brought me back in the match in the second. That’s what made the difference.”
The World No9 will now face the familiar challenge of Gauff, who she met in the quarterfinals of the Australian Open last month. On that occasion, the Ukrainian swept the American aside 6-1, 6-2. She hopes for more of the same under the Friday night lights.
“I think I did a few good things in Melbourne – I will have to do them again,” she said with a smile, before suggesting Gauff may need to be ready to face a partisan crowd once again. “Dubai is a perfect place for me. When I won here for the first time, I entered the top 10. Winning here twice, it holds a special place for me. We love to spend time here, I have my close friends here, I really enjoy playing here, and I think a lot of Ukrainians are coming to support me.”
In the other semi-final, Jessica Pegula will face Amanda Anisimova in an all-American tie. Pegula beat 2025 finalist Clara Tauson in the afternoon, before No2 seed Anisimova dethroned reigning champion Mirra Andreeva as the sun came down.
The 26th edition of the annual WTA event, which runs until February 15 21, features 16 of the top 20 ranked female players in the world and 35 of the top 40. The Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships is owned and organised by Dubai Duty Free and held under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai. It will be followed by the emirate’s annual ATP 500 men’s tournament from February 23 to 28.
SOURCE: MEDIA RELEASE / SUPPLIED CONTENT AND IMAGES
