Alex Eala +6 in WTA Rankings after suffering heavy loss on Italian Open debut
Alex Eala suffered a heavy defeat against Marta Kostyuk on her Italian Open debut, but she is set to continue her climb up the rankings.
Kostyuk, the world No 27, proved far too strong as she crushed Eala 6-0, 6-1 in the opening round in Rome on Wednesday night.
The 22-year-old Ukrainian won the first 10 games of the match, lost just five points on serve and won and 60 of the 91 total points played.
ostyuk is in fine form having reached the quarter-finals of the Madrid Open, where she lost a thrilling contest to world No 1 and eventual winner Aryna Sabalenka.
Eala was playing her maiden match at the Italian Open, and she is still in the very early stages of competing regularly on the WTA Tour.
The 19-year-old rising star made a sensational breakthrough in March as she reached the semi-finals of the Miami Open as a wildcard.
She stunned Jelena Ostapenko, Madison Keys and Iga Swiatek in straight sets at the Hard Rock Stadium before falling in a tough three-setter to Jessica Pegula.
The Filipina then reached the second round of the Challenger event in Oeiras before appearing at the Madrid Open, where she received a wildcard.
