ALEX Eala advanced to the WTA 1000 Miami Open Round of 16 after dropping Polish Magda Linette, 6-3, 7-6 (2), in their round of 32 match at the Hard Rock Stadium Grandstand Court Sunday morning in Manila. World No. 29 Eala trailed by a game thrice (3-4, 4-5, 5-6) in the second set but came back each time to force a tiebreak. The Filipina dominated from there, racing to a 3-0 start in the tiebreak with loaded serves and returns to win the match and level her head-to-head record against world No. 50 Linette at 2-2. Eala even broke the 34-year-old Linette’s serve three times, with the last break finishing the match after one hour and 48 minutes. “I think patience was a very key aspect of how I played today,” said Eala in the post-match court interview. “You said it first. Magda is such a fighter, and every time I played against her, she put me in such difficult positions. So, kudos to her for playing well, and I really enjoyed the battle,” she added. Seeded 31st in the tournament, Eala faces 13th seed Karolina Muchova of the Czech Republic in the fourth round. The world No. 14 defeated British Katie Boulter in their round of 32 match, 6-3, 7-5. Eala is unofficially 0-11 (not confirmed by WTA) against Czech players. The latest of those losses came from world No. 13 Linda Noskova in their Indian Wells round of 16 clash, 2-6, 0-6, on March 11. Even if her losing run against Czech players continues, Eala will still end up with $105,720 in prize money (P6.36 million) for reaching the fourth round. If Eala defeats Muchova in the round of 16, she will add a $193,645 payout (P11.65 million) to her winnings.