Eala lands in The Big Apple, ready for U.S. Open

Alex Eala expects to be in terrific shape when she campaign in the US Open at Flushing Meadows in New York.

The Filipino netter had to skip two tournaments so she could fully recover from her shoulder injury.

The US Open will be her third Grand Slam after entering the French Open last May and the Wimbledon Championships last June.

Eala, a Rafael Nadal Academy graduate, was injured at the Montreal Open as she suffered a 6-3, 1-6, 2-6 loss to Marketa Vondrousova of the Czech Republic in the Round of 128.

She then opted to return to Mallorca, Spain to rest and rehabilitate and skipped the Cincinnati Open in Ohio and the Monterrey Open in Mexico.

But by skipping the two Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) tournaments, she slid down to No. 70 in the latest world rankings.

Despite going down in the rankings, Eala, 20, isn’t concerned as her goal now is staying within the Top 100 of the WTA.

Only the Top 100 players will be given a main draw slot in Grand Slams as well as in big tournaments like the Miami Open, Italian Open and the Eastbourne Open.

“Short term, I’m just trying to maintain this level that I’m on,” Eala told Town & Country magazine.

“I’m trying to take it week by week. Long term, I want to be number one in the world, but that’s a long way away. It’s important to dream big.”

Eala hopes to emulate her success in the Miami Open, where she made it as far as the semifinal, when she competes in the US Open.