Alex Eala advances to second round of Tunisia pro tournament

Reigning Australian Open juniors doubles champion Alex Eala advanced to the second round of her first professional tournament in Monastir, Tunisia.

The junior world no. 4 played against Nadia Echeverria Alam of Venezuela, who retired midway into the third set. Eala won by default, 1-6, 7-6, 3-2.

The 14-year-old, who trains at the Rafael Nadal Academy in Spain, recovered from the poor start and roared back in the second set to force  a decider and stay in the tournament.

She will next face third seed Nina Stadler of Switzerland for a spot at the quarterfinals.

W15 Monastir is one of the events in the International Tennis Federation Women's World Tennis Tour calendar. The hard court tournament offers a prize money of $15,000. —MGP, GMA News