Alex Eala was thrilled to be among sports stars during the Laureus Awards in Madrid last Monday.

The 20-year-old Eala said seeing the icons in attendance left her in awe as she shared the same room with icons like 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic and other sporting greats.

A few days later, Eala made a good start to her Madrid Open campaign after pulling off a 6-3, 6-3 sweep over Russian qualifier Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova to advance to the Round of 64.

She is set to face world No. 21 Elise Mertens of Belgium in the Last 64 on Friday, with the time yet to be announced.

“To see those people firsthand — and sometimes I think when you see your idols and you see these athletes and you’re able to see them in person, it reminds you, ‘wow, they’re people, and they’re real,’” Eala told Tennis Channel.

“Nadia Comaneci — oh my goodness — her Lifetime Award speech, I was so touched. Eileen Gu, Novak Djokovic, Simone Biles. I was just like, everywhere you look there are stars, and everywhere you look there are people who have made waves, touched lives, and inspired so many.”

The Rafael Nadal Academy alumna said she has been improving her game on clay courts this year despite early exits in the Linz Open in Austria and the Stuttgart Open in Germany earlier this year.

Eala is currently competing in the women’s doubles with world No. 67 Zeynep Sonmez of Turkey as they face Chan Hao Ching of Chinese Taipei and Fanny Stollar of Hungary at press time.

“It’s getting better every year, I think. In general, I’m a better player this year now, at this moment, than I was last year,” Eala said.

“I’ve had some struggles on clay before, but I’ve also had some really great matches, so I’m really excited to see. There’s a couple of tournaments left, so I’m really excited.”

Eala is using the Madrid Open as part of her buildup for the French Open in Paris on 24 May.

But if she makes another memorable run like she did in last year’s Miami Open, Eala could see her ranking in the Women’s Tennis Association skyrocket once again in the coming days.