Wildcard Alex Eala gets rematch with Wimbledon semifinalist Tatjana Maria in Madrid Open

Rosy Mina

<div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img alt="Alex Eala of Philippines trains during the Miami Open at Hard Rock Stadium on March 24, 2021 in Miami Gardens, Florida. Matthew Stockman, Getty Images via AFP/File." src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2023/life/04/24/20210324-eala-alex-afp-1308954195.jpg"/><figcaption>Alex Eala of Philippines trains during the Miami Open at Hard Rock Stadium on March 24, 2021 in Miami Gardens, Florida. Matthew Stockman, Getty Images via AFP/File.</figcaption></figure></div>MANILA – Current US Open Juniors champion Alexandra “Alex” Eala of the Philippines and 2022 Wimbledon semifinalist Tatjana Maria of Germany will square off this week in the first round of the Mutua Madrid Open in Spain, three months since their maiden clash at the Thailand Open. The 17-year-old Eala, who will make her Madrid main draw debut as a wild card recipient, is the World No. 267.Three-time WTA champion Maria, who fell to eventual runner-up Ons Jabeur of Tunisia in the Wimbledon semis, is ranked much higher at 66th. In January, the Filipino qualifier suffered a 2-6, 2-6 loss against the 35-year-old German mother of two in the opening round in Hua Hin, Thailand. <ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/sports/01/31/23/tennis-eala-loses-to-germanys-maria-in-thailand-open">Tennis: Alex Eala loses to Wimbledon semifinalist Tatjana Maria in Thailand Open</a></li></ul>Despite being outplayed by the veteran in a WTA 250 tilt, Eala still regarded the match as a “great experience” because she knew it was going to be difficult to face off with a grand slam semifinalist.“There are a lot of things that I know I need to work on and maybe next time if I ever get a chance to play her again, then it will be better,” the two-time ITF singles titlist told ABS-CBN News.The Eala versus Maria match was made known during the draw ceremony on Sunday, which showed the Filipino teen in the same section of the top quarter of the draw bannered by World No. 1 Iga Swiatek of Poland. In his welcome message to the media, tournament director and former ATP World No. 12 Feliciano Lopez of Spain talked about the event’s first-ever expanded draw.“One of the defining characteristics of the Mutua Madrid Open has always been that every year it strives to improve on the previous one, to evolve and grow. This is precisely what will happen in 2023, when the ATP and WTA draws will go from 56 players to 96, making it practically the same as a grand slam,” said Lopez.Apart from Eala, the other main draw wildcards are former World No. 3 Elina Svitolina of Ukraine, Camila Osorio of Colombia, Brenda Fruhvirtova of Czech Republic, Victoria Jimenez Kasintseva of Andorra, Mirra Andreeva of Russia, and Spaniards Marina Bassols Ribera and Rebeka Masarova.<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/sports/04/26/22/tennis-bondar-blanks-eala-in-madrid-open-qualifying">Tennis: Bondar blanks Eala in Madrid qualifying</a></li></ul>“In a sport that is becoming increasingly global, figures such as Alexandra Eala are proof of the fact that tennis knows no limits. After becoming, at the age of 17, the first player from the Philippines to win a WTA Tour match, the Asian looks set to make her international breakthrough in 2023,” reported the Madrid Open.The top five seeds, meanwhile, are three-time slam winner Swiatek, reigning Australian Open champion Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus, 2022 Guadalajara champion Jessica Pegula of the United States, defending champion Jabeur, and reigning WTA Finals winner Caroline Garcia of France. The 21st Madrid Open, a WTA 1000 and ATP Masters 1000 tournament, runs from April 24 to May 7 at the Caja Mágica in Camino de Perales.In 2022, Eala competed at the Madrid Open for the first time as a wildcard in the qualifying draw, where she lost in the first round to 11th seed Anna Bondar of Hungary, 0-6, 0-6. The Rafa Nadal Academy scholar returns to Madrid with the aim of upping her clay season results, following her early defeats this month on the ITF Women’s World Tennis Tour in Switzerland.The two-time junior doubles slam champion lost in the W60 Chiasso opener, then exited the W60 Bellinzona second round after receiving a bye in the first round.RELATED VIDEO<figure class="op-interactive"><iframe height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/MkK_NUySojo?enablejsapi=1" width="560"></iframe></figure><div class="iwantbar">Watch more News on <a href="https://www.iwanttfc.com/#!/browse/Genres/News/tag_id_genres/id_news" target="_blank">iWantTFC</a></div>

Alex Eala and Tatjana Maria of Germany will square off this week in the first round of the Mutua Madrid Open in Spain.

Wildcard Alex Eala gets rematch with Wimbledon semifinalist Tatjana Maria in Madrid Open | ABS-CBN

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Wildcard Alex Eala gets rematch with Wimbledon semifinalist Tatjana Maria in Madrid Open

Wildcard Alex Eala gets rematch with Wimbledon semifinalist Tatjana Maria in Madrid Open

Rosy Mina

Published Apr 24, 2023 03:43 PM PHT

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Updated Apr 24, 2023 04:15 PM PHT

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Alex Eala

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Tatjana Maria

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