ALEXANDRA Eala battled back from a third-set deficit to defeat Magdalena Fręch and advance to the second round of the Internazionali BNL d'Italia on Wednesday in Rome.
The 20-year-old Filipina dominated the opening set 6-0 before Fręch regrouped in the second. The Polish player won the first three games of the second set and eventually forced a decider, then grabbed a 3-1 lead in the third.
Eala refused to fold.
The Filipina left-hander broke back and steadied her game late in the match to complete a gritty 6-0, 3-6, 6-4 victory in two hours and 21 minutes.
The win marked Eala’s 15th main-draw victory on the WTA Tour this season — the most among left-handed players — and extended her streak to five straight opening-match wins in WTA 1000 tournaments.
Eala, currently ranked No. 42 in the world, will next face 31st seed Wang Xinyu in the second round. Wang won their only previous meeting in a three-set semifinal battle in Auckland earlier this year.
Beyond the result, Eala reflected on the surreal journey that continues to shape her rapid rise in professional tennis.
Speaking to Tennis Channel after the match, Eala said she still finds it “crazy” to interact with Rafael Nadal regularly and occasionally receive coaching from Toni Nadal.
“Meeting Rafael Nadal and being able to speak with him regularly is crazy to me,” Eala told Tennis Channel. “Sometimes I’m even coached by Toni Nadal. If you had told me that when I was younger, I wouldn’t have believed it.”
Eala trained and studied at the Rafael Nadal Academy in Mallorca and recently returned there before opening her clay-court campaign.
She also shared how attending the Laureus World Sports Awards inspired her after meeting several global sports icons.
“I was surrounded by so many amazing athletes,” Eala said on the Tennis Channel. “I even got selfies with Novak Djokovic and Eileen Gu. I was shaking when I asked.”
She added that seeing legendary gymnast Nadia Comăneci and Olympic champion Simone Biles left a lasting impression on her.
“It was incredibly inspiring,” Eala said.
A victory over Wang would give Eala back-to-back clay-court wins for the first time this season and continue another breakthrough chapter in the young Filipina’s steady climb on the world stage. FROM THE WIRES