Eala has enjoyed visits to Viaduct Harbour and Mission Bay, but the main source of satisfaction has come from her output on court, where she has seemed to improve with each outing. She has also – for someone young and relatively inexperienced, with less than 50 tour matches behind her – a calm presence on court, seemingly quick to reset when things go wrong.
“It just goes back to the standard that my team and my family, especially, have ... built around me growing up,” said Eala, who confirmed that mid-match meltdowns are not part of her makeup.
“Smashing a racket is a big no-no in my family, and if that happened, you’d probably never see me on court again,” she laughed.
Her point and game management has stood out this week – as she is able to dictate play from the back of the court and make good decisions – even against much more experienced opponents.
“Some days are easier than others,” said Eala. “Every match presents its own unique set of challenges. But I definitely do see improvement from last season.”
Friday was a mature performance, as she outclassed and outthought fifth seed Magda Linette to prevail 6-3 6-2 in 1h 37m. The Pole, world No 55, is a former Australian Open semi-finalist with more than 400 matches on tour, but the 33-year-old struggled with the blustery conditions, while Eala adjusted much more quickly.
“I’m happy with how I handled the external factors, the wind and playing Magda has always been difficult for me,” said Eala, who had lost their previous two encounters.
That never looked likely on Friday. Eala was broken in the first game but rebounded straight away, with crisp, heavy returns. That became a template for the match, with Eala consistently finding the lines, the corners and usually prevailing in the longer rallies. After Linette saved two set points at 5-2, Eala sealed the first bracket after a great duel – with thumping cross-court strokes from both players – before turning to her coach and parents and shouting “C’mon! Vamos!”
Eala showed her full range in the second set, with some cute drop shots, a feathered pass down the line, and some punishing clean winners. There was some resistance from Linette – she held at 1-4 down, saving five break points, then broke Eala in the following game – before the Filipino steadied to serve out the match.
“It was a difficult one with a lot of wind, but happy with how I was able to bounce back after certain moments of frustration,” said Eala.
World No 57 Wang also looked solid, ahead 6-4 4-3 against Francesca Jones before the British player retired, after struggling with a leg issue.
“It’s going to be a very difficult match-up,” said Eala. “Semi-finals are never easy, and she’s been playing really well this week, so I’m really looking forward to it.”
As is everybody else.
Michael Burgess has been a sports journalist for the New Zealand Herald since 2005, covering the Olympics, Fifa World Cups, and America’s Cup campaigns. He is a co-host of the Big League podcast.
