MANILA, Philippines – Alex Eala still cannot seem to extricate herself from her struggles to begin the 2025 season.
The Filipina teen was shown the exit of the WTA Singapore Tennis Open after a crushing 6-3, 6-2 defeat to Simona Waltert of Switzerland on Sunday, January 26.
The two were already familiar with each other, having faced off three times in 2021 in the ITF Tour. The then-15-year-old Eala prevailed in straight sets in their first encounter but lost the next two in three close sets.
Eala realized on Sunday just how much the now 24-year-old Swiss, who ranked a career-high 107 and made the second round of the French Open in 2024, has progressed since then.
After getting off to a promising start by breaking serve in the opening game of he first set, Eala found herself losing her own serve in the very next game. From a 2-2 deadlock, Waltert went on to erect a comfortable 5-2 lead, which she sustained until the ninth game to clinch the first set at 6-3.
The current world No. 161 Waltert kept her momentum going by jumping to a 2-0 lead in the second set. The Filipina world No. 136 put herself on the scoreboard in the third game, but there was little reason for her to celebrate as Waltert zoomed to an insurmountable 5-1 lead.
It was all over by the eighth game at the Calling Tennis Centre, with Waltert emerging victorious after just 1 hour and 17 minutes.
It was another disappointing finish for Eala, who — after a semis appearance in the WTA 125 Canberra in Australia earlier this month — has not advanced past the qualifiers of two WTA events and the first round of an ITF W100 tournament. – Rappler.com