Eala faces No. 2 Swiatek in Madrid Open rematch

Filipina tennis star Alex Eala, currently ranked 72nd globally, secured her place in the Madrid Open round of 64 by defeating Bulgaria's Viktoriya Tomova in straight sets on Tuesday, April 22.

Eala will face world No. 2 and defending champion Iga Swiatek in the second-round match at 8:10 p.m. local time Thursday, April 24, a rematch following Eala's stunning quarterfinal win over Swiatek at the Miami Open last month where she won in straight sets despite being a significant underdog.

Swiatek earned a first-round bye and has dominated on clay courts with titles from multiple Madrid Opens and French Opens, while Eala showed versatility and aggression in her first-round match against Tomova with timely drop shots and net approaches.

Both players come into the Madrid Open having started their clay season last week; Swiatek was eliminated by Jana Fett's conqueror Ostapenko in Stuttgart, while Eala suffered a second-round exit at Oeiras in Portugal.

Despite her previous victory over Swiatek, Eala will still be considered an underdog given Swiatek’s track record on clay courts and her recent form.