World No. 23 Jelena Ostapenko admitted that beating Alex Eala wasn’t easy following a gritty 6-4, 7-5 victory in the Round of 16 of the women’s singles event of the Linz Open ion Austria last Wednesday.

Ostapenko, 28, said going up with a great player like Eala in a Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) 500 event was no joke after losing to her twice in the Miami Open in Florida and in the Eastbourne Open in Great Britain last year.

“When I saw the draw, I was like, ‘wow, that’s a tough first round you know?’ Like, second round for me but she’s a great player,” Ostapenko said.

“I was down in the second set, and I told myself, ‘Okay, I’m going to fight, I will do everything possible. I will fight till the end this set, and if there’s a third set, it’s fine. I still have another chance.’”

Although Eala made an early exit in her Austrian debut, she still pocketed €15,690, or around P1 million, while climbing back to No. 45 in the WTA rankings.

Now, the Filipina is setting her sights on the Stuttgart Open, another WTA 500-level tournament, on 13 April at the Porsche Arena in Stuttgart, Germany.

Eala, who opened her campaign with a 6-4, 6-3 victory over world No. 87 Julia Grabher, 6-4, 6-3, in the Round of 32, is thankful for her time in Austria.

“I’m really thankful for the hospitality. I hope to discover your culture more and have some fun on the court,” Eala said.

In Germany, she will face the best players in the world after getting a slot in the main draw following the withdrawal of Zheng Qinwen of China due to injury.

No less than No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus, No. 2 Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan, No. 3 Iga Swiatek of Poland and No. 4 Coco Gauff of the United States will banner the German competition with Ostapenko returning as the defending champion.