How Elena Rybakina outsmarted Alex Eala: Here is the surprising breakdown

TL;DR

Elena Rybakina defeated Alex Eala 6-4, 6-3 in the third round of the Italian Open, eliminating Eala from the tournament. Rybakina, the second seed, advanced after Eala's strong performance in earlier rounds.

Key points

Elena Rybakina defeated Alex Eala
Match score was 6-4, 6-3
Rybakina is the second seed at the tournament
Eala had wins over Frech and Xinyu
Eala was eliminated in the third round

Elena RybakinaAlex EalaItalian Open

Photo by Robert Prange/Getty Images

Alexandra Eala is out of the Italian Open singles draw after a straight-sets loss to Elena Rybakina in Rome.

Rybakina, who is seeded second at the tournament, won 6-4, 6-3 in their third-round match.

Eala entered the WTA 1000 event without a seed and recorded wins over Magdalena Frech and Wang Xinyu before her run came to an end against Rybakina.

The Filipina star has since broken down her defeat at the Italian Open, where she remains active in doubles play as world number 42.

Photo by Robert Prange/Getty Images

Alexandra Eala speaks on her loss to Elena Rybakina at the Italian Open

After their first ever match, the young star said: “Yeah I’m happy with my performance. I think I was able to reach a good level of tennis. I don’t think it was an easy win for her. So yeah, of course, things to work on and learnings from this match. But I think I’m in a good way.”

Eala further discussed how she managed to compete with Rybakina’s power during their match:

“All in perspective, of course. She hits a good ball so it’s very difficult. I think, of course, power, sometimes being aggressive, is really my game. But in the end, she’s two meters so it’s difficult. But I think today I did what I could, and yeah I’m happy.”

The Filipina also commented on how Rybakina handled critical moments better: “Yeah they were very competitive games. But I think that she has the capacity to win a couple more free points. And of course she’s much more experienced than I am.

“She’s the reigning Grand Slam champ, she won Australia and she’s been doing great since then. So I think the experience and many other factors helped her today.”

Looking ahead to her doubles campaign alongside Zheng Qinwen at the Foro Italico event, Eala said: “It feels great. They were runners-up at the Madrid Open last time out.