Filipina tennis star Alex Eala is looking to improve on her semifinal finish when she competes in the girls’ singles competition of the 2021 French Open Stade Roland-Garros in Paris, France.
The long-time Globe ambassador and the International Tennis Federation (ITF) no. 3 ranked juniors player has been set as the second seed in the tournament, which kicks off on Sunday, June 6. Eala will have some tough competition in front of her with the presence of ITF no. 2 ranked juniors player Victoria Jimenez Kasintseva, who is the top seed in this year’s French Open.
Also vying for the title are the third-seeded Polina Kudermetova and the fourth-seeded Diana Shnaider. American netter Robin Montgomery, who is the fifth seed, is also expected to be in the mix. One player who will be missing in the girls’ field is the no. 1 ranked ITF juniors player in the world, Elsa Jacquemot, who opted to compete in the women’s singles competition. It was Jacquemot who gave Eala the boot from the semifinals of the French Open last year with a 4-6, 3-6 victory.
The big difference this year, though, is that Eala will be heading to battle armed with plenty of experience, thanks to her stints in nine professional competitions so far this year, which included a championship run in the W15 Manacor in January. She also had a second-place finish in the doubles competition of the W25 Platja D’Aro last month.
She will also compete in the doubles competition with partner Oksana Selekhmeteva of Russia.
Eala is seeking her second grand slam win after she captured the 2020 Australian Open girls’ doubles title with Priska Madelyn Nugroho of Indonesia.
