Filipino tennis ace Alex Eala arrived in Melbourne, pumped up and ready to see action in the women’s event of the 2023 Australian Open.
The 17-year-old netter had a seven-hour trip from Canberra to Melbourne Park in preparation for her first Grand Slam event in the women’s division.
“Arrived in Melbourne last night and got my first practice this morning. Good to be back after three years,” Eala said in a social media post.
In preparation for her Grand Slam debut, Eala joined the W60 Canberra International women’s singles event where she lost to former doubles partner Oksana Selekhmeteva of Russia, 6-3, 4-6, 4-6, in the second round of the qualifying round last Monday.
Eala, who dropped to No. 215 in the latest Women’s Tennis Association ranking, will have to be prepared as she needs to win three straight matches in the qualifying round to make it into the main draw of the Australian Open.
It will only get harder from there for the three-time junior Grand Slam champion as she clashes with the likes of world No. 1 Iga Swiatek of Poland, Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus, Emma Raducanu of Great Britain and Filipino-Canadian Leylah Fernandez, who advanced to the final of the US Open in 2021.
