Eala Refocuses on French Open After Tough Strasbourg Exit
PARIS, France — Filipina tennis star Alexandra “Alex” Eala is shifting her attention to the upcoming French Open after suffering a hard-fought opening-round defeat at the Internationaux de Strasbourg.
Eala fell to Ukrainian qualifier Oleksandra Oliynykova in a three-set battle, 6-3, 5-7, 3-6. The 20-year-old started strongly, taking the first set, but her opponent gradually found her rhythm, forcing a turnaround in the second set and sustaining the momentum through the decider in a match that lasted over two and a half hours.
Despite the early exit, Eala still earned €17,310 (around ₱1.2 million) in prize money for her performance in the tournament.
With the French Open just days away, the rising Filipina talent is now focused on sharpening her game for the clay-court Grand Slam at Roland-Garros, where she will compete in both singles and doubles. She is set to team up with Canadian world No. 9 Victoria Mboko in the doubles draw.
Eala, who turns 21 on the 23rd of this month, has also made a small climb in the rankings, rising to No. 35 in the WTA live standings, while officially sitting at No. 38.
She is expected to return immediately to training to address errors from her recent matches as she prepares for a tougher challenge in Paris.
Sourced online by Tracy Cabrera/ia/xf
