Filipino tennis player Alex Eala was eliminated from the Mutua Madrid Open singles competition on Friday (Manila time) after losing to Belgium’s Elise Mertens, 2-6, 1-6, in their second-round match in Spain.
Mertens, ranked No. 21 in the world, took control early in the match after Eala fell behind 0-2. Eala responded by winning two of the next three games to close the gap to 2-3, but Mertens then won seven consecutive games to secure the first set 6-2 and build a 4-0 lead in the second set.
Eala, ranked No. 44, held serve once in the second set to move to 1-4 but was unable to recover as Mertens closed out the match. Mertens recorded five break points and five aces, while Eala did not record an ace.
Eala advanced to the second round after defeating Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, 6-3, 6-3, in the opening round.
She will continue in the tournament’s doubles competition, where she is partnering with Zeynep Sonmez. The pair is scheduled to face second-seeded Taylor Townsend and Katerina Siniakova in the Round of 16 on Sunday.
Mertens advances to the third round, where she will face Karolina Pliskova.
