Guangzhou Open Round-Up | Alexandra Eala falls to qualifier, Tomljanovic finds way past Alycia Parks

The WTA 250 Guangzhou Open completed its Day Two with the conclusion of the first round, marked by the defeat of the 4th seed Alexandra Eala, who failed to capitalize on a one-set lead against the American qualifier Claire Liu.

On the other hand, Ajla Tomljanovic secured a tight victory against the American Alycia Parks, while Yulia Putintseva managed to return to winning ways against the qualifying teenager Alina Korneeva.

The World No. 53 Alexandra Eala failed to live up to her favorite status and fell to qualifier Claire Liu (No. 305) in a three-set battle. The Filipina started the tournament as the 4th seed and had a chance this week to enter the Top-50 for the first time in her career. However, she was surprised by the former junior No. 1 Claire Liu—currently 25 years old—who is looking to recover her ranking after a couple of years that included a 7-month mental health break and a subsequent two-month injury layoff.

In the first set, the American struggled with her serve, and Eala took up to three breaks to gain a comfortable 6-2 lead, winning 57% of points on her serve against a poor 35% for Liu. The Filipina remained dominant in the second set, even leading 6-2, 4-2 with the serve in her favor. However, Liu mounted a comeback, managing to turn things around, winning four consecutive games to secure the second set 6-4.

Eala managed to take a lead at the start of the final set with a break that put her up 3-1. However, pressure again got the better of her, and the American took five of the last six games to secure the 2-6, 6-4, 6-4 victory and advance to the second round, where she will face the Hungarian Anna Bondar. Liu also guaranteed a nearly 50-spot jump in the ranking to No. 259.

This was one of the most anticipated matches of the day between the Australian Ajla Tomljanovic (No. 89) and the talented American Alycia Parks (No. 65), two players who, when physically well, have the capacity to rank much higher. The Australian continues to seek rhythm—following a decent campaign in Ningbo to the quarter-finals, including a win over World No. 11 Clara Tauson.

Tomljanovic showed her experience in important moments and capitalized on the constant errors of her rival Parks—who committed up to 13 double faults—to come from behind in both sets. Tomljanovic was superior in service consistency, with 77% first serves in, compared to only 48% for the American. In the first set, Tomljanovic recovered from a 3-5 deficit (where she even saved a set point), while in the second set, she recovered from a 2-4 deficit. The 32-year-old secured a hard-fought 7-5, 7-5 victory and will face fellow American Cathy McNally in the second round.

The 6th seed Yulia Putintseva (No. 76) survived a tricky opponent in the first round amid an inconsistent period. In her last 10 tournaments, she has only secured two main draw wins and has been forced to play qualifying in several events. This time, the former Top-20 player showed her seniority to secure a 7-6(2), 4-6, 6-4 victory against the 18-year-old star Alina Korneeva.

Korneeva (No. 165) is one of the great promises for the future, having been the Australian Open and French Open Junior champion in 2023 and the World No. 1 in that category. Now 18, she is taking her first steps in WTA 125 tournaments and some qualifiers, succeeding in the Guangzhou qualifying, but ultimately running into Putintseva's experience.

The 30-year-old Kazakh was consistent with 80% first serves in, winning 67% of them, although she found herself in trouble several times. In the first set, she squandered an early 4-0 lead, and Korneeva made a comeback where she even missed a set point. However, Putintseva's experience allowed her to send it to a tie-break and take the lead 7-6(2).

In the second set, Korneeva reacted, fighting to hold her serve and again missed a few set points before securing the set and leveling the match 6-4. In the deciding set, the Kazakh stepped on the accelerator in the final minutes and ended up closing out the hard-fought two-and-a-half-hour victory 7-6(2), 4-6, 6-4.