Eala loses in French Open first round

Filipino tennis sensation Alexandra Eala proved she does have feet of clay, when her unremarkable clay court season in singles came to an end in the first round of the French Open with a 6-4, 6-2 defeat at the hands of 17^th seed Iva Jovic of the United States on Tuesday.

The match was touted as one of the headline first-round ties at Roland Garros, but the world No 38 couldn’t reproduce the kind of counter-punching tennis she is renowned for against the 18-year-old American. The 21-year-old Filipina, while popular wherever she plays, has somewhat struggled so far in her short career on the Grand Slam stage and had been keen to lay down a marker early in Paris. But against the Australian Open quarter-finalist, she managed to win only 45 per cent on her first serve, as her Achilles heel – her weak serve – returned to haunt her. In contrast, Jovic won 70 per cent on her first serve.

Eala finished her clay season in singles with a 4-6 record. She had reached the quarters in Linz, lost in the first round in Stuttgart, reached the Round of 64 in Madrid and the Round of 32 in Rome and lost in the first round in Strasbourg.

The Filipino star had also lost in the first round at the French Open last year, so her ranking points won’t take much of a hit. She next plays her doubles first-round match partnering Victoria Mboko against Leylah Fernandez and Diana Shnaider on Wednesday.