Alex Eala puts up fight vs world No. 2 Elena Rybakina before Italian Open exit

MANILA, Philippines – Alex Eala proved to be no pushover against world No. 2 Elena Rybakina.

But the gap in power, precision, and experience between Eala and one of the most consistent players on the WTA Tour showed as the Filipina exited the Italian Open following a 6-4, 6-3 loss in the round of 32 at the Foro Italico in Rome on Sunday, May 10. 

Eala displayed flashes of brilliance in her bid to pull off the giant upset, even grabbing a 2-1 lead in the second set, before Rybakina — the 2023 champion of the WTA 1000 tournament — restored order to reach the round of 16 in Rome for the fourth time in five visits.

After clinching the nip-and-tuck first set that took nearly an hour to finish, Rybakina rode on her momentum and broke Eala in the opening game of the second set.

Eala, though, broke back by blanking the Kazakh star then held serve in the third game to seize the upper hand at 2-1. 

That ended up to be the last time Eala sniffed the lead as Rybakina won five of the next six games to wrap up the match in 1 hour and 32 minutes and advance to the round of 16 of her 13th straight tournament. 

Rybakina, the reigning WTA Finals and Australian Open queen, committed 10 more unforced errors than Eala with 32 but fired 11 more winners with 28.

Despite the loss, Eala’s performance in Rome bodes well for her progress as she held her own against Rybakina, who owns an impressive 29-6 record in 2026, on a surface where she is the least proficient.

This Italian Open marked the first time Eala, who will turn 21 in less than two weeks on May 23, reached the third round of the main draw of a WTA Tour clay event following victories over Poland’s Magdalena Frech in the round of 128 and China’s Wang Xinyu in the round of 65. 

Gearing up for the French Open, Eala will reportedly compete in the Internationaux de Strasbourg set from May 17 to 23 in France.

The French Open, the second Grand Slam of the year, kicks off on May 24. – Rappler.com