Eala needs three sets, more than three hours to top Siegemund in Miami

MIAMI -- A year after her breakthrough run to the semifinals, Alexandra Eala is into the third round of the Miami Open.

It was anything but easy for the World No. 29, who needed three hours and 20 minutes to take down veteran Laura Siegemund 6-7 (8), 6-3, 6-3. It was the longest match that Eala has played on the WTA Tour Driven by Mercedes-Benz.

As Hard Rock Stadium was slowly starting to fill up and come to life, Eala raced to a quick 3-0 lead. But Siegemund, 38, used an array of shots to throw Eala off her game, taking four of the next five games to level the set. After taking a 6-5 lead, Eala let three match points slip away and Siegemund held to tie it at 6.

The German saved a fourth match point in the tiebreaker before closing it out 8-6.

Eala showed her maturity and poise in the next two sets, breaking Siegemund early in each and closing them out fairly comfortably.

"It really was close," Eala said in her on-court interview after the match. "It was demanding, physically and mentally. But that was one of my goals last year after the tournament, to improve physically. And here I am, fresh as a flower."

Eala will play Magda Linette in the third round after the 34-year-old stunned former champion and No. 2 seed Iga Swiatek 1-6, 7-5, 6-3 on Thursday night.