Alex Eala shifts to her singles campaign at the Birmingham Open, taking on former world no. 49 Linda Fruhvirtová in the first round.
Filipina tennis ace Alex Eala opens her WTA 125 Birmingham Open singles campaign on Tuesday (PH time), taking on Czech Republic's Linda Fruhvirtová.
Eala, the tournament’s third seed, is looking to bounce back from her first-round exit at Roland Garros and continue her strong 2025 season, which includes a breakthrough semifinal run at the Miami Open.
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Eala and her partner Rebeka Masarova are coming off a doubles loss against Ellen Perez and Storm Hunter in the same tournament the night prior.
Now, she faces a tricky first-round matchup against Fruhvirtová, a fellow 20-year-old former top 50 player currently ranked no. 154 in the world.
Fruhvirtová, once touted as one of the WTA’s rising stars, has struggled with consistency in recent months but remains a dangerous opponent with experience on the big stage.
The Czech player made headlines in 2022 when she reached the fourth round of the Miami Open. She also managed to reach the fourth round of the 2023 Australian Open and has a career-high ranking of no. 49.
Eala and Fruhvirtová are scheduled to clash in the Round of 32 of the grass-court event, which serves as a one of the warm-ups for the prestigious Wimbledon Championships set later this July.
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Top-seeded Alycia Parks of the United States and no. 2 seed Kimberly Birrell of Australia headline the draw.
At the same time, Eala hopes to gain momentum and experience on grass ahead of her anticipated Grand Slam return.
(With reports from Kiko Demigillo/One Sports)
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[Editor's note: This article was written by a member of the One Sports Digital with the help of AI, and then checked by the staff to ensure accuracy.]