Alex Eala exits Stuttgart Open to Fernandez

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STUTTGART, Germany — Filipina tennis player Alexandra “Alex” Eala bowed out of the Stuttgart Open after a 6-1, 6-4 loss to Leylah Fernandez in the Round of 32 on Tuesday.

The defeat came in Eala’s opening-round clash at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix, where she faced the world No. 25 Filipina-Canadian on red clay.

Fernandez seized control early and raced to a 5-0 lead in the opening set before Eala got on the scoreboard.

The Canadian, playing her first match on red clay this season, closed out the first set in the next game for a 6-1 advantage.

Both players entered the match with aggressive intent, but Fernandez dictated the pace from the start by pressuring Eala’s second serve and mixing in sharp angles and changes of direction.

Fernandez also used variety, including a drop-shot winner, to keep Eala on the defensive and stretch the lead to 4-0 and then 5-0.

Eala, backed by strong crowd support, managed to get on the board late in the set but could not stop Fernandez from wrapping up the opener.

The second set opened with a more assertive Eala, who fired an ace and two clean winners to take her first lead of the match at 1-0.

Fernandez answered by building a 3-1 advantage, but Eala stayed within reach and held serve again to cut the gap to 3-2.

The 20-year-old Filipina continued to hold her ground in the second set and produced another solid service game, including an ace, to remain in contention.

Fernandez then regained command by earning a double break and moving ahead 5-2.

Eala mounted a late push by breaking to trim the deficit to 5-3.

She then saved two match points at 15-40 and pulled closer at 4-5.

Fernandez held firm on her third match point to close out the match in straight sets.

The loss ended Eala’s campaign in Stuttgart, but the match showed flashes of resistance against a higher-ranked opponent with more tour experience on the WTA circuit.

Fernandez, who reached a career-high ranking of No. 13 in August 2022, improved her win-loss record this season to 4-9.

After the match, Fernandez described her opening-round duel with Eala as “like playing a mirror.”

“Oh, man, 100 percent,” Fernandez said, likening the match to playing with a mirror.

“I remember watching her play a couple years back at the Rafa Nadal Academy and she was playing super fast. I remember telling my coach at the time, like, ‘Wow, she plays quick!”

Fernandez said her team expected a difficult contest against Eala, who has been rising on the WTA Tour.

“My coach said, ‘You know, she’s not gonna go down easy, as you can see. She’s gonna fight. You’re gonna have to take the match,’” she shared.

“So I was glad that I trusted him, and I just trusted the training that we’ve done. Happy to get the win here.”

Despite the straight-sets result, Fernandez said she still saw room for improvement in her performance.

When asked to rate her play, she replied: “I’d say a 7 out of 10.”

“It was 8, 9 out of 10 until the 6-1, 5-2, but, you know, there’s always that little lapse of concentration. I’m just glad that I stayed positive as much as possible. And of course, the crowd helped me.”