The legend of Alexandra Ella continues to grow.
On a cold Friday night in Indian Wells, long after all other courts had finished, Ella and her legions of fans kept the atmosphere electric in Arena 3 as the Filipina beat Dayana Yastremska 7-5, 4-6, 7-5.
“It means the world that the whole world is supporting me in such a prestigious competition,” Ella said after her win at a press conference held after midnight. “They stayed up late and cheered me on in the cold, so it really added to the feelings and emotions after the game.”
Either way, things can happen. Determined Ella makes her debut in what they call “tennis heaven” to make sure it’s hers.
She rallied late in the game and broke Yastremska’s serve at 5-4, then won the fourth match point to seal the victory and spark a lively celebration on Court 3.
The magical synergy between Ella and her fans, many of whom carried Philippine flags, created another raucous party on Friday night as Yastremska and Ella kept them on the edge of their seats with a high-octane physical confrontation in a match that felt like a boxing match between two knockout specialists.
Ella rode on the energy of her fan base to win with two breaks of serve in the first set, and won 7-5 with a third and final break of serve.
She struggled to catch up after falling behind in the second set, but Yastremska saved a break point in the service game and sealed the victory 6-4.
The hard-hitting Ukrainian, who was on the coaching bench with American Pam Shriver, broke serve at 5-4 in the deciding set but she failed to withstand the pressure, Eala punched back and then continued to apply the pressure, inch by inch past Yastremska to cash in on her fourth match point for victory in 2 hours and 44 minutes.
“I just told myself to keep fighting and I’m still in the game. Yeah, like I said on the field, I really have to dig deep into that,” Ella said. “I think this game could have gone either way. I don’t think there was a huge shift in momentum at any point.
“Of course, I was down 5-4. I think, she broke me down. So, like I said, I tried to remind myself that I was still in the game and just stay there, stay there and keep fighting.”
Ella will face Coco Gauff in the third round. She recently lost to Gauff 6-0, 6-2 in the Dubai quarterfinals.
“The last game was a tough one for me. I thought she played really well. So all I can do is take what I learned from the last game and try to apply it in the next game,” she said.
