Alex Eala’s clay court schedule: Teen star makes major change after Madrid Open run

Oli Dickson Jefford 28 Apr 2025 5:57 PM

Alex Eala hits a backhand.

Alex Eala has become one of the biggest WTA Tour stars to watch since her breakthrough run at the Miami Open in March.

The 19-year-old’s run to the semi-final in Miami, which saw her beat the likes of Iga Swiatek and Madison Keys, propelled her to tennis stardom – and inside the top 100 of the WTA Rankings.

Now, the former junior US Open champion attracts attention everywhere she goes and is continuing to make waves this clay swing.

However, following a recent run of clay-court tournaments, Eala has made a notable change to her schedule for the coming weeks.

Clay season so far

After reaching the last four of the Miami Open, Eala – who turns 20 in May – made arguably the sensible decision to take a few weeks off, rather than head straight to court without processing her historic run.

That was particularly key considering the impending change of surface, with the tennis world turning its attention towards clay courts over the coming months.

Having surged inside the top 80 following her Miami run, the Filipina made her 2025 clay debut at the Oeiras Ladies Open in Portugal, a WTA 125-level event.

Eala defeated Anouk Koevermans in straight sets in the opening round, though she then fell to world No 137 Panna Udvardy in the Round of 16.

However, that was followed by a significant step back up to WTA 1000 level, with Eala receiving a wildcard into the main draw of the Madrid Open.

A confident straight-sets win over Viktoriya Tomova in the first round booked a rematch against Swiatek in round two, who used all her experience to level their head-to-head with a battling 4-6, 6-4, 6-2 triumph.

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What comes next for Eala?

Eala was set to play at the Catalonia Open this week, with the 19-year-old initially seeded sixth in the draw alongside the likes of Katerina Siniakova and Leylah Fernandez.

However, having only played Swiatek on Friday, the 19-year-old has now withdrawn from the event, which got underway on Monday.

The next big event Eala could play in is the Italian Open in Rome, which, much like Miami and Madrid, is a WTA 1000 tournament.

Eala just missed out on sealing automatic qualification for the main draw, though could enter if players withdraw beforehand, if she receives a wildcard – or if she comes through qualifying.

The main draw is set to take place from May 6-18, though Eala is also entered into the Parma Ladies Open from May 12-18.

That is, much like the Catalonia Open, a WTA 125-level event that will run alongside the second week of the WTA 1000 draw in Rome.

Following that, Eala will then head to the French Open – where she will make her Grand Slam debut.

She was ranked high enough to enter the main draw of Roland Garros automatically, with the women’s singles event starting on May 25, two days after she turns 20.

Eala will become the first Filipina woman to contest the main draw of a Grand Slam singles event.