"I did not realize": Iga Swiatek shares what she did differently in win against Alexandra Eala at Madrid Open

Poland’s Iga Swiatek has stated that she did not pay much attention to the hype surrounding her first-round opponent at the Madrid Open. The 23-year-old, who is regarded as one of the best players currently playing in women’s tennis in the singles category, started her title defence with a tough contest where she came back from a set down to secure a win with a score of 4-6, 6-4, 6-2 against Philippines’ young sensation Alexandra Eala.

The result was a more significant one for the five-time Grand Slam winner, who had recently suffered a defeat against the same opponent in the quarterfinals of the Miami Open in straight sets, with a score of 6-2, 7-5. Swiatek, while talking to the media after the match, stated that she did not pay too much attention to the hype surrounding her opponent.

"I understand that there is hype about the young players, but you gotta be focused on yourself, and honestly, I did not realize... I kind of had other things to think about,” she said. "It wasn't easy to get into the rhythm and feel the right timing, so I'm happy that I was just patient.”

On the other hand, Eala, who is now regarded as the one for the future, after her impressive outings at the Miami Open, stated that she is ‘happy’ despite suffering a defeat in a match where she won the first set. The 19-year-old stated that she learnt a lot from the outing against one of the best players on the planet.

"I’m happy with the match, happy with how I competed," she said. "Obviously up a set and a break is a good situation to be in, but you have to remember that there’s another person on the other side of the court. More so, a multiple Roland Garros champion. She did well also … Things to take back and to learn. What was different [between Madrid and Miami] was that, in my opinion, was that she executed better in the important moments, and she had a little higher level than me in specific moments of the match."