Who is Oleksandra Oliynykova? Alex Eala's Round of 32 foe at Strasbourg Open

Alex Eala is back in action, debuting at the WTA500 Strasbourg Open on Monday against Ukrainian star Oleksandra Oliynykova in the Round of 32 set in France.

The 25-year-old Oliynykova is currently ranked No. 66 in the WTA rankings — a career-high mark she reached last March after reaching the finals of the Megasaray Hotels Open in Turkey.

Like Alex Eala, Oliynykova is also making her main draw debut at the Strasbourg Open. She will be looking to keep her run going after surviving the qualifying round with two victories.

Oliynykova dominated Ksenia Efremova in the first round of the qualifiers, 6-1, 6-2, before pulling off a 6-4, 6-4 victory over Yulia Putintseva in the second round to formally clinch a main draw ticket.

Oliynykova and Alex Eala have never faced each other before, making the Strasbourg Open their first-ever meeting on tour.

Alex Eala seeks redemption after suffering early exits in her previous four clay-court tournaments. She opened her clay campaign with a Round of 32 loss at the Linz Open before crashing out in the opening round of the Stuttgart Open.

Eala returned to action at the Madrid Open, but again failed to make a deep run after bowing to Elise Mertens in the Round of 64. She then faced another tough challenge at the Italian Open, where she was drawn against multi-titled star Elena Rybakina in the Round of 32.

—Bea Micaller/JMB, GMA News