Spanish coach raves about Eala’s rise

Spanish tennis coach Joan Bosch believes Alex Eala has significantly ramped up her game in the last two years and her seven-game winning streak bridging the Guadalajara 125 in Mexico and the Sao Paulo Open in Brazil is proof the Filipino netter is right on track.

Bosch said seeing the 20-year-old tennis ace being able to stay poised in Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) matches is a testament to her hard work.

Despite Eala losing to Indonesian star Janice Tjen, 1-6, -4-6, in the quarterfinal of the Sao Paulo Open, Bosch attributed this as something that was out of their hands as they had only a little time to prepare after her Mexican conquest.

“I realized that the speed of her shots, when she rallies the forehands and backhands, she really improved a lot in these two years. I have to say that I was impressed in the first game with the way she was playing,” Bosch said.

“If you ask me what we can do better after winning a tournament and to be better, I don’t know. If there is one tournament in Mexico and the other one in Brazil and you have to travel 24 hours, you know there are many things you cannot control.”

While Eala wasn’t able to secure another WTA title, she is expected to become even better in the coming months.

For one, Eala is poised to return to the Top 60 as she is projected to be at No. 57 according to the WTA live rankings.

She is also slated to join tougher and more competitive tournaments, thanks to her rank sitting within the Top 100, which assures her a slot in the main draw.

Eala will compete in the 33rd Southeast Asian Games in Bangkok from 9 to 20 December after the Philippine Tennis Association submitted her name to the Thai organizers.

She and Tjen could duke it out for SEA Games supremacy could be in the cards if everything lines up.

Bosch said he and Eala have yet to map out the tournaments they will join for the remainder of the year.

“I think our idea is to play two tournaments in China. One will be a 125 event then we will play one 1000 tournament. We’re still deciding because with her ranking, you are in between the 250 main draw or 500 qualies so we’re still deciding,” Bosch said.

“But for sure the next ones will be two tournaments: The 125 and 1000.”