Wuhan (China), Oct 12 — Chinese qualifier Shi Han rallied to beat 13th-seeded Alexandra Eala of the Philippines 4-6, 6-3, 6-3 at the Wuhan Open WTA tennis tournament on Monday, while newly-crowned Asian Games champion Wang Xiyu eased past Wang Xinyu 6-2, 6-0 in an all-Chinese derby.
Shi, ranked 217th in the world, traded serve with the world No. 19 to 4-4 in the opening set before Eala reeled off two straight games to take it 6-4.
The 21-year-old Chinese player earned her first break of the match in the seventh game of the second set and pulled away to win it 6-3, reports Xinhua.
Eala faded physically in the decider, with her unforced errors mounting as Shi raced to a 3-0 lead. The Filipino held serve twice to stay in touch at 2-4, but Shi held for 5-2 and converted her first match point on serve to close out the victory.
Shi dropped her racket and clutched her head in celebration. "I wasn't surprised at all after losing the first set. She is a top-20 player," Shi Han said after the match. "Before the match, I was prepared to lose badly, so I served boldly in my service games and tried to make it as difficult as possible for her."
Shi, who came through qualifying after pushing China's tennis ace Zheng Qinwen to three sets in the China Open first round in Beijing last week, said that loss had done wonders for her confidence.
"Actually, I was really happy with that match. I thought I played very well. In the third set, my fitness just couldn't keep up," she said. "Congratulations to Qinwen on winning the title. I was joking with my coach yesterday that I am the 'honorary runner-up.'"
"Playing at home feels great, especially on the big court. I can feel the passion of the crowd," she added. "Thank you all for coming to cheer for me."
Shi will next face Leylah Fernandez of Canada.
Wang Xiyu needed just one hour and eight minutes to beat Wang Xinyu. Wang Xiyu, who won the gold medal in Nagoya, said that the triumph has been a lift for her confidence.
"It is a big encouragement for my confidence," she said. "It really makes me believe in my daily training and hit every shot with more determination. I think that is very important."
"I hope I can stay as long as possible in this tournament and also try to play a lot, magic in the China season, trying to compete with more and more good players and trying to improve my tennis in every I bring points like fitness like the decision on the court I think that's going to be very important for me to compete with top players."
Wang Xiyu will next play Mia Pohankova of Slovakia.
In other matches, Fernandez beat Ekaterina Alexandrova of Russia 6-4, 3-6, 6-3. Marie Bouzkova of the Czech Republic advanced when Clara Tauson of Denmark retired while trailing 6-1, 2-0. Maria Sakkari of Greece defeated Donna Vekic of Croatia 6-4, 6-2.