By ADRIAN STEWART CO

Negrense tennis standout Alex Eala opened her Madrid Open campaign in emphatic fashion, dispatching Russia’s Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, 6-3, 6-3, in the women’s singles Round of 128 on Wednesday, April 22 (Philippine time).

Eala delivered a composed and efficient performance at the Arantxa Sanchez Stadium, controlling key stretches of the match to secure a straight-sets victory.

The 18-year-old showed strength behind her serve, firing one ace and committing just one double fault while landing 70 percent of her first serves.

She was particularly effective on her first serve, winning 76 percent of those points, a significant edge over Pavlyuchenkova’s 50 percent.

Eala also capitalized on her opportunities, converting 4-of-8 break points, compared to just 1-of-6 for her opponent.

She finished with 68 total points won, well ahead of Pavlyuchenkova’s 50, and dominated in games won, 12-6.

Despite trailing in second-serve points won (37 percent to 56 percent), Eala made up for it with aggressive returns, claiming 26 receiving points and consistently putting pressure on the Russian veteran.

Eala’s victory marks a strong start in one of the WTA Tour’s premier clay-court events, signaling her growing confidence and competitiveness on the big stage./ASC, WDJ