Alex Eala knocked out of Madrid Open second round again

MANILA, Philippines – A third-round appearance in the Madrid Open remains elusive for Alex Eala.

Eala crashed out of the WTA 1000 tournament in Spain following a 6-2, 6-1 loss to world No. 21 Elise Mertens of Belgium in the round of 64 on Friday, April 24.

A break by Mertens in the very first game proved to be a bad omen as the 30-year-old Belgian, who has won two of her 10 WTA titles on clay, disposed of Eala in 1 hour and 16 minutes.

It marked the third straight year Eala lost in the second round in Madrid after falling prey to Romania’s Sorana Cirstea in 2024 and to Poland’s Iga Swiatek in 2025.

The loss adds to Eala’s struggles on clay as she has not won more than once in a single clay tournament for nearly two years.

Eala last picked up multiple victories in a clay event when she reached the third round of qualifying of the 2024 French Open. Her record on the challenging surface stands at 4-8 since. 

Also, Eala saw her head-to-head record against Mertens fall to 0-2, the Filipina losing in straight sets as well when the two duked it out in the round of 32 of the 2023 Jasmin Open in Tunisia.

Mertens will take on Czech Republic’s Karolina Pliskova next. 

But Eala will still see action in Madrid as she and Turkish partner Zeynep Sonmez battle American Taylor Townsend and Czech Katerina Siniakova in the round of 16 of doubles play on Sunday, April 26. 

Eala and Sonmez face a daunting task against Townsend and Siniakova, who are eyeing their third doubles title of 2026 after triumphs in the Miami Open and the Indian Wells Open. – Rappler.com