Can losing actually work in a tennis player’s favor? Alexandra Eala was forced to confront that uncomfortable question after crashing out of the Singapore Open against Tatiana Prozorova. The defeat was already a surprise, but what came next was even more awkward: Eala was asked whether losing might actually be good for her. With the Asian Games right around the corner and a brutal travel schedule looming, the question was obvious, even if Eala clearly did not love hearing it.

“It’s hard to see a loss as a blessing in disguise. Sorry, I was not expecting that question,” said Eala during her press conference. “I would have wanted to win today. I would have wanted to go further in the tournament. But whether it’s a blessing in disguise or not, it doesn’t matter at present. What matters to me is learning from this loss and preparing for my next match.”

With the tennis schedule featuring tournaments every week, it becomes difficult for a player to excel at an event if they have had a deep run the week before. While every player enters a match hoping to win, the journalist’s question to Eala makes sense, given that the Filipino player is all set to travel to Nagoya for the Asian Games, which are due to start on September 27.

The early loss does give Eala a bit of breathing room, which she would not have gotten had she reached the semifinal or final in Singapore, with the latter being scheduled on a Sunday as well. A deep run would have meant hectic traveling before her first-round match at the Asian Games, which would have hurt her chances. Eala is all set to be the top seed at the Games and is one of the top favorites for the gold medal.

Eala’s decision to play the Asian Games is under a bit of scrutiny, as the Filipino player has opted out of the WTA 1000 event in China to fulfill her national duties. The event in Beijing, being a mandatory event on the WTA Tour, means that Eala could be fined and given a zero-point penalty, which will affect her ranking. However, despite the debate over Eala’s Asian Games participation, the Filipino player has received strong support for her decision from her federation and former players.

As for her match in Singapore, this was the World No.18’s first opening-round exit since her loss to Elise Mertens at the Bad Homburg Open.

Alexandra Eala Loses a Hard-Fought Opening Match in Singapore

As the third seed, Eala received a first-round bye before facing Tatiana Prozorova, who had already beaten Sofia Costoulas. On paper, Eala was the favorite. On court, though, she spent much of the match fighting her way out of trouble.

Prozorova jumped out to a 3-1 lead in the opening set before Eala responded by winning five of the next six games to take it. For a while, it looked like the Filipino had finally taken control, especially after moving 4-2 ahead in the second set.

That control did not last. Prozorova won three straight games to lead 5-4, and although Eala briefly stopped the run by holding serve, the Russian took the next two games to force a decider.

The third set followed the same messy pattern. Prozorova went 2-0 up, Eala answered with three straight games to lead 3-2, and then everything collapsed. Eala did not win another game as Prozorova reeled off four in a row to finish the upset.

The bigger concern was Eala’s serve. She broke Prozorova six times and still lost because her own serve was broken seven times. She won only a little over half of her first-serve points and committed seven double faults, numbers that underline a problem she will need to clean up quickly before the Asian Games.