No rest for ‘rising’ Eala with two pro events lined up in Turkey

Alex Eala, now back at Rafa Nadal Academy in Mallorca, Spain, is looking to compete in back-to-back tournaments in Turkey right after achieving her highest ranking so far at 662nd in the world.All of 15 years old, the Filipino hotshot expressed delight over her rise in the Women’s Tennis Association singles standings, from beyond 1000th at the start of the year.

“I’ll take it one step at a time,” said Eala, who made the third round in the recent W60 Bellizona in Switzerland. At that time, she was ranked 715th in the world.

The tournaments in Turkey, the W15 Antalya, are lower in key and in prize money compared to that in Switzerland, but it is where she’s expected to earn more stripes.

The Turkey tournaments are slated April 19 to 25 and April 26 to May 2.

Aside from that, she’s hoping to compete in the Grand Slams once organizers finally allow juniors competitions during the pandemic.

She has played in 12 pro tournaments so far and has won a title in Manacor, Spain.

On her 16th birthday on May 23, she would be eligible to compete in 12 pro tournaments plus four more on account of her world standings as a junior.