Dayana Yastremska vs Alexandra Eala

WTA Eastbourne – Quarterfinal Preview

Dayana Yastremska vs Alexandra Eala

Date: 26 June 2025 | Time: 16:00 CEST
Surface: Grass | Location: Eastbourne

🧠 Form & Context

Dayana Yastremska
🛫 Grass groove: 6–1 this swing, runner-up in Nottingham and cruising through first two rounds here (d. Linette, Jones) with just nine games dropped.
🧨 First-strike tennis: Huge serve (8 aces vs Jones) and flat backhand up-the-line are lethal on low bounce.
💡 Confidence high: 23–13 season includes indoor final in Linz; bidding for her 4th career tour SF of 2025.
⚠️ Patchy nerves: Has blown leads in three tight finals this year—needs composure if match tightens late.

Alexandra Eala
🌟 Breakout season: Miami SF (d. Swiatek) sparked climb to Top 70; 8–3 on grass, stormed through qualies and stunned Ostapenko (ret.) in R16.
🎯 Lefty variety: Heavy topspin forehand plus biting slice serve out wide on the ad side disrupt rhythm.
⏳ Closing test: Has lost three deciding sets on grass this month—must stay aggressive to avoid passive stretches.
🎒 Learning curve: First WTA grass QF; facing a proven big-match hitter in Yastremska.

🔍 Match Breakdown

Expect a contrast of power vs guile.

Yastremska will look for short points—big first serve, plus-one forehand, quick backhand strikes into Eala’s forehand wing.
Eala must extend rallies with higher net clearance, mix in drop-shots and slice returns to blunt the Ukrainian’s pace.

Key levers:
• First-Serve % – Yastremska at 70% this week; if she stays above 65%, Eala’s break chances shrink.
• Return Depth – Eala’s chip-returns need to land low to force Yastremska into extra balls.
• Mental edge – Yastremska 15–9 in tiebreaks since 2024; Eala 6–10—pressure moments favor the Ukrainian.

🔮 Prediction

Prediction: Yastremska in 3 sets – anticipate momentum swings and at least one tight breaker. Eala’s angles will cause trouble, but Yastremska’s sharper grass instincts and first-strike efficiency should edge it.