Eala returns to Rafael Nadal Academy ahead of Italian, French Opens

AFTER a short vacation with family and friends, Alexandra “Alex” Eala returns to home base at the Rafael Nadal Academy (RNA) in Spain to rev up for bigger clay tournaments led by the French Open later this month.

“RNA, the best,” posted the 20-year-old Filipina pride on Instagram after reuniting with her coaches at the tennis school of the Spanish legend.

Ms. Eala roamed around Madrid, where she also graced the Laureus World Sports Awards as a dazzling guest, for a few days to recharge after a second-round exit in the Mutua Madrid Open against world No. 21 and tournament No. 19 seed Elise Mertens of Belgium, 6-2, 6-1.

She and Turkish friend Zeynep Sonmez also bowed out in the doubles second round against the powerhouse duo of Katerina Siniakova of Czechia (world doubles No. 2) and Taylor Townsend of the United States (world No. 5), 6-1, 7-5.

The Madrid Open is a 1000-level tour and Ms. Eala will play in the similar level stint in the Internazionali BNL D’Italia (Italian Open) in Rome on May 5 to 17.

Ms. Eala is also listed in the WTA 125 Parma Ladies Open in the same country slated May 12 to 17 but her availability there will depend on her campaign at the prestigious Italian Open.

Then there’s the Roland Garros (French Open), where Ms. Eala has her eyes locked to impress at the queen of clay on May 24 to June 7 in Paris as the second Grand Slam of the season.

The clay surface has proven to be Ms. Eala’s Achilles heel so far this season after not getting past the second round in her last three tournaments.

After the Miami Open, a hard court tournament, Ms. Eala exited in the second round of the Upper Austria Ladies Linz Open in Austria and in the first round of the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix in Stuttgart, Germany.

She is hoping to finally score a breakthrough in Italy led by world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus, who’s out for revenge after a stunning quarterfinal exit in the Madrid Open, and the rest of the world tennis titans in the Top 10.

Ms. Eala this week stayed at No. 44 in the WTA rankings but with no ranking points to defend unlike in the Miami Open for the rest of the season, she’s poised to climb the ladder anew after reaching a career-best No. 29 last March. — John Bryan Ulanday