Alex Eala looks to improve other aspects of her game after making an early exit in the French Open for the second straight year.
The 21-year-old Filipina said the back-to-back setbacks only makes her hungrier and more confident with the ability to assess herself in defeat without emotions clouding her judgment.
After making an early exit following a 4-6, 2-6 loss to world No. 17 Iva Jovic of the United States in the Round of 128 of the women’s singles event on Tuesday. Eala’s chances vanished as she and her partner in world No. 9 Victoria Mboko of Canada withdrew from their women’s doubles match against Filipino-Canadian Leylah Fernandez and Russian Diana Shnaider on Wednesday.
“I’m Top 40 now. I’ve done a lot of great things and the game at this level is so much more than just technique. There are so, so many different factors that go into it,” Eala said.
“But that being said, I’m super proud of how far I’ve come. I’m confident in myself. I’m confident in how I play even through losses like this and I think that’s very important.”
With the forgettable campaign, Eala will now shift her focus to her grass-court bid, starting with the Queen’s Club Championships in London from 8 to 14 June before competing in the Eastbourne Open from 20 to 27 June with the hopes of winning the crown after losing to world No. 52 Maya Joint of Australia last year.
But Eala’s biggest test on grass would be the Wimbledon Championships from 29 June to 12 July in London, where she is looking to bounce back from her dismal first-round setback to Barbora Krejcikova of the Czech Republic last year.
Eala said she hopes to apply the lessons from her early exits as she begins the grass-court season with a fresh slate.
“Yeah, I think there were definitely apparent differences, at least from how I saw it. Of course, I have to process it a little bit more and maybe get into it on a deeper level with my team,” Eala said.
“That’s why, of course, I see the difference between players at her level or ranking and my general level. I think I know what work needs to be done in order to make that my average.”