One is a rising young star. The other is a tennis legend who continues to deliver moments of brilliance on the court.
Together, they proved to be a formidable doubles partnership.
Alex Eala and all-time great Venus Williams passed their first test as teammates with flying colors, defeating American Catherine Harrison and Australian Alexandra Osborne, 6-3, 6-4, in the first round of the women’s doubles competition at the WTA 500 Bad Homburg Open in Germany on Wednesday.
Playing together for the first time, Eala and Williams entered the match at a disadvantage in terms of familiarity. On the other side was a pair that had already competed together in three consecutive tournaments this June.
That lack of experience as a tandem, however, was hardly noticeable in the opening set.
The 21-year-old Eala and the 46-year-old Williams came out firing, catching Harrison and Osborne off guard. They raced to a commanding 4-0 lead and never looked back, cruising to the opening set in just 30 minutes.
Harrison and Osborne, ranked World Nos. 142 and 143 in doubles, respectively, mounted a stronger challenge in the second set.
The match remained on serve through the first six games before Eala and Williams secured a break in the seventh. Their opponents responded immediately with a break of their own in the eighth game to level matters once again.
But Eala and Williams — ranked World Nos. 151 and 120 in doubles, respectively — delivered when it mattered most.
They converted a crucial break point after a deuce battle in the ninth game, then held serve in the next to seal the victory and book a spot in the quarterfinals.
Awaiting them in the next round are second seeds Tereza Mihalikova of Slovakia and Olivia Nicholls of Great Britain.
Mihalikova and Nicholls come into the match in strong form, having captured the WTA 500 HSBC Championships title on June 14.
Earlier this year, they also reached the final of the WTA 500 Abu Dhabi Open, where they defeated Eala and Indonesia’s Janice Tjen in the semifinals.
