Eala cautious as French Open nears

Despite being regarded as one of the best players in the world right now, Alex Eala’s feet remained planted on the ground as she gets ready for the French Open in Paris on 24 May.

Eala, 20, said being exposed to high-level competition for a year in the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) Tour made her realize that anything can happen in high-level competitions.

The Rafael Nadal Academy graduate is set to appear in the qualifiers of the Strasbourg Open in France on 17 May.

“Everybody is really good at this level, and anything can happen. That’s the beautiful thing about tennis, but it also keeps you on your toes because every match is different,” Eala said.

“Sometimes one match can change a lot for you, especially when you’re changing seasons. For me, clay is not my strongest surface, so every match is really a battle.”

Eala would be entering the French Open women’s doubles with world No. 9 Victoria Mboko of Canada.

She recently made it as far as the Round of 32 of the Italian Open before losing to world No. 2 Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan.

Eala is still poised to return within the top 40 of the WTA rankings in the coming days ahead of the French Open to as high as No. 38.

She continues to sharpen her skills in the clay courts as Eala hopes to emulate her Miami Open run last year.

“I’m finding my footing and I know that I can do well. I’m a much better player physically and mentally than I was last year and we’ve really been working hard, my team and I. And hopefully the things we’ve been working on will reflect more on my game,” Eala said.