SUMMARY
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MANILA, Philippines – Like a nightmare on a loop, Alex Eala’s service game continued to haunt her play in the pro tour, leading to another early elimination.
Eala was shown the exit door early again, falling in straight sets to Tatjana Maria of Germany, 6-1, 6-1, in the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) 2023 Mutua Madrid Open at the red clay court of La Caja Magica in Madrid, Spain on Wednesday, April 26.
The 17-year-old Filipina – who was given the privilege of a wildcard slot in the WTA 1000 event for the second straight year – could not make the most of her stint against Maria, a 2022 Wimbledon semifinalist.
Eala and Maria also faced off in the WTA Thailand Open last January, where the 35-year-old German ousted her teen foe in the first round, 6-2, 6-2.
And it became clear early that there would be no payback for the 2022 US Open girls champion against the world No. 66 Maria.
Quickly stamping her class, Maria broke Eala in the opening game of the match.
The Filipina teen fought back gallantly by also breaking Maria to even the count at 1-1, but that proved to be the only real challenge Eala posed as the veteran broke her young rival three more times to pull away comfortably in the opening set.
Eala’s woes persisted in the second set as Maria quickly raced to a 3-0 advantage.
After dropping her first five service games, Eala finally held serve in the fourth game to get on the scoreboard at 1-3.
But her celebration would be shortlived as Maria swept the next three games to end the match.
It will be back to the drawing board for Eala, who has now lost her last four opening-round matches. She has slid to 267 in the world rankings from a high of 214. – Rappler.com
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