Leveling up with Alex

It’s difficult not to think that Alex Eala could’ve advanced to the Miami Open Finals if only she held serve in the ninth game of the first set against World No. 4 Jessica Pegula. Eala had three double faults in that game with the first giving Pegula a 30-0 lead. But Eala powered back to make it 40-30 for set point. Then came deuce on her second double fault and Pegula capitalized on a third double fault for game point. Pegula went on to break Eala and survived. Still, Eala had a chance to take the set but lost in the tiebreak.

In the second set, Eala slipped and twisted her ankle after Pegula went up, 30-15, in the first game. She soldiered on but took a medical timeout for her ankle to be taped “like a mummy” before the fourth game which Eala lost. Battling like a wounded warrior, Eala stormed back to win six of the next eight games for the set, 7-5. So if she had won the first set, Eala would’ve sealed the ticket to face World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka.

Coming close to a Finals slot was a feat that has brought Eala, now World No. 75, to the mainstream consciousness of the tennis community. She took down three Grand Slam winners on the way to the semis and that was quite an achievement. But Eala, determined to reach greater heights, is far from resting on her laurels. Obviously, she needs to work on adding more punch to her serves. Velocity will improve with power and in Miami, her serve speed was measured to average 70-75 mph, way below Sabalenka’s highest of 133 registered in 2018. More power on her serve will create opportunities to approach the net for volleys. Against Pegula, Eala met her match in trading deep groundstrokes so varying her points of attack would be helpful. Another area to improve is her delivery which has been described as flat. A slight upward tilting of the racket will give her shot spin and more “rise” to avoid hitting the net. While striking the ball smack in the middle of the racket face means more power, there is the danger of a flat stroke. Finally, she has to work on conditioning. Eala appeared to lose steam in the homestretch of the third set against Pegula but it could also have been lack of experience that worked to her disadvantage. After all, Eala is only 19 and Pegula, a ripe 31.

ITF coach Roland Kraut said Eala, being aggressive, takes her shots early, accounting for a flat delivery. “Hitting flat means hitting with no spin,” he explained. “Strong but risky. Adding spin makes it higher over the net and the ball will go down, safer but not aggressive. If Alex’ opponent hits like that, she has a chance. But if her opponent can take her shots and get the ball back more, then Alex will be tested. An attacker will get more winners but more errors, too.”

Kraut said Pegula, a counterpuncher, isn’t overpowering but hits deep and wide. “I noticed Pegula trying to make Alex hit an extra ball of two,” he said. “If Alex hits a winner, then so be it but the more she hits, the more chance of error and more importantly, it will take a toll on Alex’ legs which happened in the match. Alex’ misses in the end of the third set were not because she made bad decisions but because her legs weren’t 100 percent under her anymore. But that’s understandable.”

Kraut said Eala should be getting the feel to play high-level matches, one after the other. “Keep up physically, condition the body to last four or five matches in a row,” he advised. “Keep up mentally which she can as she showed coming back in the second set despite losing the first set after set point, going down 1-3 in the second set and almost hurting her ankle. Staying confident with her gameplan which is dictating play by taking the ball early and also being able to make in-game adjustments like mixing up shots with angles, spins, drop shots or coming to the net.”

Eala’s basics are well-grounded so the adjustments to make in leveling up should come naturally and easily. Sooner than later, she’ll make her mark in a Grand Slam event. Her time will come inevitably.