Filipino tennis player Alexandra "Alex" Eala continues her journey at the WTA 1000 Italian Open in Rome, now competing in the doubles event. Following her exit from singles after a defeat by Elena Rybakina, Eala has joined forces with American Hailey Baptiste.
Eala and Baptiste stepped in for the Italian-Canadian duo of Elisabetta Cocciaretto and Leylah Fernandez, who withdrew just before the tournament. As the top alternate, they are set to face the No. 2 seeded team of Katerina Siniakova and Taylor Townsend.
Siniakova and Townsend are among the top-ranked doubles players, holding the No. 1 and No. 2 spots, respectively. Eala currently ranks No. 88 in doubles, while Baptiste is at No. 129.
Earlier this month, Eala partnered with Zeynep Sonmez at the Madrid Open, where they encountered Siniakova and Townsend in the round of 16, losing in straight sets.
Interestingly, Eala and Baptiste have faced each other before in singles, with Eala holding a 2-0 advantage over Baptiste in their head-to-head matches.