Filipino tennis sensation Alex Eala enjoys another jump up the rankings ahead of her return to the WTA Tour in Portugal, which marks the start of her clay court campaign.
Despite being inactive in the past few weeks, Alex Eala has jumped three places overall since she ended her semis run in Miami, now finding herself at world no. 72 in the WTA rankings released on Monday, April 14.
Eala, 19, propelled herself from world no. 140 to world no. 75 after her unlikely run to the semifinals of the Miami Open, where she toppled top players like Madison Keys and Iga Swiatek in sweeping victories.
But since then, the Rafa Nadal Academy scholar was able to take advantage of movements above her.
Last week, Eala moved to world no. 73 before the latest moves bumped her one more place to mark a new career-high of world no. 72 in the WTA rankings.
The move comes ahead of her return to action in Portugal as she competes in the Oeiras Ladies Open, which marks her first clay tournament of the season. There, she is the top-seed — a first for her in a WTA competition.
Eala competes on Monday against the older Dutch hitter Anouk Koevermans in the Round of 32.
The Filipina tennister is seeking her first title in the WTA Tour.
The tournament in Portugal is also set to serve as preparation for Eala as she anticipates her first Grand Slam main draw appearance in the French Open starting in May.
In the ITF Tour, Eala has five titles in singles and three in doubles.