Alex Eala sees her bid in the Australian Open in Melbourne end, dropping her opening match of the qualifying tournament.
Alex Eala will have to wait once again for her next chance to qualify for the main draw of a Grand Slam as a professional.
The 19-year-old suffered an early exit in the qualifying tournament of the 2025 Australian Open, faltering against Croatia’s Jana Fett, 7-5, 6-2, in her opening match Tuesday in Melbourne.
Despite riding high on the momentum of her first-ever WTA semifinal in Canberra leading up to the Aussie Open, Eala came out flat against Fett, especially in the second set where the 27-seed really compounded on the Filipina’s woes.
Against the much older Fett, Eala just couldn’t catch a break especially in her opponent’s serving game — only converting four out of 16 break points in the match.
She thus falls 0-2 against Fett in their head-to-head matchup.
Prior to the match, Eala achieved her highest-ever ranking in the WTA list as she rose to world no. 138 on Monday.
[RELATED: Alex Eala rises to career-best WTA ranking ahead of Australian Open qualifiers]
However, Fett’s experience proved too much for the young tennis ace.
The Rafa Nadal Academy scholar will need to wait for the French Open in late May for another chance to make her first main draw in a Grand Slam.
She previously went deep into the qualifying tournaments of multiple Grand Slams last year, but ultimately fell short on the final step to barge into the main draw.
As a junior player, Eala was Girls’ Doubles Champion in Melbourne back in 2020.