Manila, May 20 -- Filipino tennis ace Alex Eala and American world No. 2 Coco Gauff saw their impressive run in the Italian Open come to a narrow end after a hard-fought quarterfinal defeat to defending champions and home crowd favorites, Jasmine Paolini and Sara Errani.

The youthful pair, both unseeded in the draw, pushed the Italian duo to the brink before eventually falling, 7-5, 3-6, 10-7, in a one-hour and 39-minute thriller at the WTA 1000 event in Rome.

Coming off dominant straight-set victories in their opening two rounds, Eala and Gauff faced a formidable test in the experienced Italian tandem, ranked No. 6 in the world and riding the momentum of a stellar 2024 campaign.

Paolini and Errani, who not only won the Italian Open ti...