Alex Eala is 1-2 on clay this year…
After Eala beat Julia Grabher in the first round of the Linz Open, she lost to Jelena Ostapenko in round two.
Then, Eala lost to Leylah Fernandez in Stuttgart.
Does anybody else even come close to Alex Eala’s popularity right now?
She will now head to Spain for the Madrid Open, where she will have a chance to prove herself on clay.
Alex Eala can use her experience to make a deep run at the Madrid Open
Experience isn’t a word you hear associated with Eala very often.
After all, the Filipina is still just 20 years old.
But there are some events where Eala has more experience than others.
And the Madrid Open just so happens to be one of them.
Receiving several wild cards over the years due to her association with IMG, the firm that runs the Madrid Open, Eala has played six matches in the Spanish capital.
Alex Eala’s record at the Madrid Open (2-4)
| Match | Opponent | Result | Score |
| 2022 Madrid Open – Q1 | Anna Bondar | LOSS | 0-6, 0-6 |
| 2023 Madrid Open – 1R | Tatjana Maria | LOSS | 1-6, 1-6 |
| 2024 Madrid Open – 1R | Lesia Tsurenko | WIN | 2-6, 6-4, 6-4 |
| 2024 Madrid Open – 2R | Sorana Cirstea | LOSS | 3-6, 7-6, 4-6 |
| 2025 Madrid Open – 1R | Viktoriya Tomova | WIN | 6-3, 6-2 |
| 2025 Madrid Open – 2R | Iga Swiatek | LOSS | 6-4, 4-6, 2-6 |
Admittedly, she has only won two, but as the saying goes, ‘you learn more from failure than success’.
Making her debut at the Linz Open and Stuttgart Open earlier this month, Eala not only had to adjust to the court conditions, but the surroundings, too.
It cannot be underestimated how much goes into playing a WTA event, especially when you are doing so for the first time.
She won’t have that issue in Madrid, as she has played the event and used the facilities for the last four years.
What is the best win of Alexandra Eala’s career so far? 🤔
Iga Swiatek in Miami, Clara Tauson at the US Open, Jasmine Paolini in Dubai, or a different match?
Eala won’t deal with any external factors at the Madrid Open; instead, she can focus on her tennis.
And we can finally see what she has to offer on the red stuff.
A 1-2 record through three matches would suggest she doesn’t have much to offer on clay, but we’ve already explained why the Linz Open and Stuttgart Open aren’t the most representative of tournaments.
The Madrid Open should be, though, and if Eala wants to be taken seriously on the clay, she could do with a solid performance.
Don’t forget that Eala has already produced a high level in Madrid.
Yes, she has only won two matches, but even in defeat, she’s played some good tennis.
Last year, she took a set off Iga Swiatek, a four-time French Open champion, and threatened to cause an upset in her second-round match.
She did eventually fall to defeat in three sets, but proved she can compete with one of the best clay-courters in women’s tennis.
A year older and inarguably a much better player now, it remains to be seen what she can achieve at the 2026 Madrid Open.
Alex Eala can make a major ranking jump on clay
Eala currently sits 44th in the ‘Live WTA Rankings’, 15 spots off her career-high.
Live WTA Rankings
| Rank | Name | Country | Points |
| 40 | Jelena Ostapenko | Latvia | 1,314 |
| 41 | Elisabetta Cocciaretto | Italy | 1,310 |
| 42 | Katerina Siniakova | Czechia | 1,299 |
| 43 | Peyton Stearns | USA | 1,296 |
| 44 | Alex Eala | Philippines | 1,285 |
| 45 | Marketa Vondrousova | Czechia | 1,263 |
| 46 | Lois Boisson | France | 1,259 |
| 47 | Laura Siegemund | Germany | 1,217 |
| 48 | McCartney Kessler | USA | 1,214 |
| 49 | Dayana Yastremska | Ukraine | 1,200 |
Luckily for Eala, as she struggled on clay last year, she has very few points to defend over the coming months, giving her a chance to shoot back up the rankings.
Points Alex Eala will defend on clay
- Oeiras 125 – 15 points
- Madrid Open – 35 points
- Italian Open – 10 points
- French Open – 10 points
- Total – 70 points
If Eala can find another gear on the clay, she could well break back into the top 30 before too long.
Only time will tell what the future holds for the ever-popular Filipina, but you certainly won’t want to miss her return to action in Madrid.
The 2026 Madrid Open begins on Thursday, April 23.
