In a gripping showdown at the Eastbourne Open on Saturday, Australian teenager Maya Joint edged past Alexandra Eala of the Philippines 6-4, 1-6, 7-6(10) in a match that had the crowd on the edge of their seats. The clash between two of the brightest young stars on the WTA Tour delivered a rollercoaster of momentum shifts, emotional highs, and nerve-wracking drama.
Joint, just 19 years old, showed remarkable poise under pressure, saving four match points in the final-set tiebreak before sealing victory with a blistering backhand winner. The match lasted two hours and 26 minutes and marked her second WTA title of the season, following her triumph in Rabat on clay.
Eala, 20, was bidding to become the first player from the Philippines to win a WTA title. She had fought her way through qualifying and defeated several top-tier opponents en route to the final, including former Grand Slam champions. Her run captivated fans and highlighted her growing presence on the tour.
Highlights Maya Joint vs. Alexandra Eala Rothesay International – Eastbourne
Stats: aces, double faults, breaks, winners
2h:26
The Australian won this contest even if she conquered less points than the Filipino (93 vs. 101).
Joint
The Australian was well focused in converting 67% of the break points that she procured (4/6).
Eala
On the other side, Alexandra was well focused in converting 67% of the break points that she conquered points (6/9). However, that was not enough to win the match.
After this match, the head to head between Joint and Eala is 1-0 for Maya.
This was the 2nd career title for Joint. (see list of titles and finals).
Live score progression and stats
Joint conquered a leading position at the beginning of the set after breaking Alexandra Eala in the 2nd game (2-0) before consolidating her break and lead 3-0. Notwithstanding, the set was not over yet and there was more work to do for the Australian to win the set because Eala succeeded in breaking back in the 9th (4-5) game. Joint maintained her cool to break the Filipino in the 10th (6-4) game.
Maya failed to serve out the set when leading 6-4 to be broken at 40.
The Australian converted 66% of her break points (2/3). She had 3 break points opportunities in the 2nd (1-0 30-40) and the 10th game (5-4 15-40 and 30-40). Furthermore, on the other side, Eala converted 25% of her break points (1/4). She had her opportunities in the 9th (3-5 30-40 and 40-A) and the 11th game (3-6 30-40 and 40-A).
They contested 66 points. The Australian won 6 more points than Eala (36-30). Joint lost 14 points on serve (22-14). On the losing side, Alexandra conceded 14 points on serve (16-14).
Joint commenced this set in the best possible way after breaking Alexandra Eala in the 2nd game (2-0). That break was crucial for Eala to win the set (6-1) since there were no other breaks anymore.
The Australian was completely outplayed in the last 5 games of the set when the scoreline went from 2-1 to 6-1.
The Filipino was exemplary in converting all her break points in the 4th (3-1 15-40) and the 7th game (5-1 0-40). On the other side, Alexandra didn’t concede a single break point during this set.
They played 42 points. Alexandra won 14 points more than the Australian (28-14). Alexandra surrendered 8 points on serve (17-8). On the other side, Joint conceded 11 points on serve (6-11).
Joint had a pretty good kick start of the set after breaking Alexandra Eala in the 2nd game (2-0). Nevertheless, Maya managed to stage a good comeback to break the Filipino in the 3rd (1-2) and in the 5th (3-2) game before winning the set (6-1).
Maya had no answers in the last 5 games of the set when the score went from to .
Neither player conceded a single break point during this set. Also, on the other side, Alexandra didn’t concede a single break point during this set.
They played 0 points. This set was so close that, Alexandra won this set even if she scored the same amount of points as her opponent. Eala was untouchable on serve to concede not even a single point during her serving games (0-0). on the other side of the net, the Australian conceded 0 points on serve (0-0).
