Alex Eala sweeps world No. 197 at French Open qualifiers

Photo from alex.eala/Instagram

Filipino tennis prodigy Alex Eala kicked off her French Open campaign in emphatic fashion, sweeping world No. 197 Ye-Xin Ma of China, 6-1, 6-1, in the first round of the qualifiers at Stade Roland Garros in Paris on Monday.

Taking to Instagram after the game, she wrote, “First Grand Slam win!!! Q2 coming up.”

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Alexandra Eala (@alex.eala)

Eala’s performance, her first win in the qualifying rounds of the second Grand Slam of the year, was marked by five successful breaks of Ma’s serve, 19 winners and a commendable control over her unforced errors, limiting them to 14 compared to Ma’s 35.

From the onset, the current No. 160 in the world asserted her dominance, leaving Ma with little chance to stay in the contest as she quickly established a 2-0 lead in the opening set.

The 24-year-old opponent showed brief resistance in the third game, but Eala held her nerve to maintain her lead, eventually stretching it to 5-0. The set concluded with Eala preventing any further break points against her.

The second set followed a similar pattern, with Eala breaking Ma in the first game and racing to a 4-0 lead. Eala’s commanding play ensured she remained in control throughout, sealing her victory and advancing to the next round of qualifiers.

This was not the first time they encountered as the Rafa Nadal Academy student previously defeated Ma in 2022 in Chiang Rai with a 6-3, 6-4 scoreline.

This win is a significant morale booster for Eala, who is aiming to rebound after a recent first-round exit at the ITF W75 Zagreb in Croatia last week. The Zagreb match, which lasted nearly three hours, ended with a scoreline of 5-7, 6-3, 4-6 in favor of Lukas, who is currently ranked 234th in the world.

Eala will then face 30th seed and world No. 137 Taylah Preston of Australia in the next round and if she wins over Preston, she will secure her first main draw entry in a Grand Slam in her professional career.