Filipina teen tennis sensation Alex Eala exited the 2nd round of the International Tennis Federation (ITF) Rafael Nadal Academy women’s $25,000 tournament on Thursday, March 4 in Manacor, Spain.

The 15-year-old star threatened No. 3 seed Jana Fett but fell short as the Croatian took home a gritty 4-6, 6-3, 7-5 win.

Though down 5-3 in the 3rd set, Eala flashed a moment of brilliance as she overturned the deficit with 3 straight games to extend the match.

But the 24-year-old Fett outlasted the Rafael Nadal Academy scholar with back-to-back games to close out the match that lasted for 2 hours and 57 minutes.

The Filipina tennis ace had a strong start as she took the opening set, but the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) world No. 210 Fett regained her footing in the 2nd set to bring the match to a decider.

Eala was given a slot through the ITF junior player exempt program, where the top-ranked juniors players are allotted a number of pro tournament spots within the year.

Since Eala finished with a year-end world No. 3 ranking in the juniors circuit, she is allowed to join up to 3 $25,000 and 2 $60,000 events this year.

As she levels up to a $25,000 tournament, the Filipina tennis ace will be going up against players who are in the top 100 to 200 of the WTA rankings.

After kicking off the 2020 season with her maiden Grand Slam title in Melbourne, the rising tennis star became the Philippines’ first junior Grand Slam semifinalist in 35 years in the Roland Garros girls singles tournament. – Rappler.com