Alexandra Eala, Joao Fonseca advance in pre-Wimbledon warm-ups

Youth was served to kick off the Lexus Eastbourne Open on Monday, with Alexandra Eala and Joao Fonseca both advancing through their first-round matches.

Eala, who won two matches in qualifying to reach the main draw, made quick work of Lucia Bonzetti, 6-0, 6-1, while Fonseca battled back from a set down to defeat Zizou Berge, 6-7 (8), 6-0, 6-3.

Both Eala and Fonseca made headline-grabbing runs earlier this season at the Miami Open, Eala reaching the semifinals with wins over Australian Open champion Madison Keys and then-No. 2 Iga Swiatek, while Fonseca upset No. 19 seed Ugo Humbert and pushed No. 10 Alex de Minaur to three sets in the third round.

The pair of teen phenoms—Eala has since turned 20 years old—went on to make their Roland Garros main draw debuts, Eala falling in the first round but Fonseca making another third round, upsetting former world No. 6 Hubert Hurkacz in straight sets along the way.

Eala and Fonseca are both in their last legs of their Wimbledon preparation, where each are set to make their SW19 debuts.

The Quezon City-born Eala played a full grass swing, reaching a quarterfinal at a WTA 125K tournament in Ilkley and qualifying for last week’s Nottingham Open. Dropping just one game to Bronzetti, Eala could next face No. 3 seed Jelena Ostapenko, who will play her first round against home favorite Sonay Kartal.

Fonseca booked an equally intriguing next round as he’ll face top seed Taylor Fritz for a pot in the quarterfinals. Fritz, who received a first-round bye, is coming off winning his first title of the season at the BOSS Open in Stuttgart, and the American will face the 18-year-old Fonseca for the first time.