Eala begins Aussie Open preparation with Macau Tennis Masters stint

Alex Eala in action during the 33rd Southeast Asian Games.

POC Media Pool

MANILA, Philippines — Alex Eala primes up for her anticipated Australian Open campaign early next year with an exhibition stint in three events at the MGM Macau Tennis Masters this weekend.

The 20-year-old Filipina gets a chance to duke it out against the sport’s legends and fellow rising stars as she vies in the captains challenge, mixed doubles and women’s singles for the two-day showcase starting at 2 p.m. Saturday.

Eala, WTA No. 53, teams up with British star Jack Draper (ATP No. 10) and Chinese Jerry Shang (ATP No. 253) for Team Lina of China against the squad assembled by Spanish legend Conchita Martinez.

Starring for Team Martinez are ATP No. 14 Alejandro Davidovich Fokina of Spain, ATP No. 19 Jakub Menšík of Czechia and WTA No. 9 Mirra Andreeva of Russia.

“A very merry practice,” Eala posted on her social media account with a photo of her teammates and Andreeva.

Eala later in the day will also figure in the mixed doubles with Shang against the 18-year-old Andreeva and ATP No. 182 Yibing Wu, also from China.

Then it’s Eala versus Andreeva in the women’s singles on Sunday for their first duel in three years.

Eala swept Andreeva, 6-4, 6-0, in the quarterfinals of the 2022 US Open that she ultimately ruled to become the first Filipina junior Grand Slam champion. They also teamed up for a second-round finish in the doubles of the same event.

The Macau Masters serves as Eala’s final event in a stellar season marked by her first WTA Tour title; qualification to all Grand Slams; and then rise to the world’s Top 50 ahead of the Australian Open from January 12 to February 1 in Melbourne; and possibly, the WTA Philippine Women’s Open from January 26 to 31 for her first home tournament ever in Manila.

She is fresh off a one-gold, two-bronze run in the Southeast Asian Games last week in Nonthaburi, Thailand.

Eala netted bronze medals in the women’s team event with Stefi Aludo, Alexa Milliam, Tennielle Madis and Shaira Rivera as well as in the mixed doubles with Niño Alcantara.

She then saved her best for last, cruising to a 6-2, 6-1 romp of home bet Manachaya Sawangkaew in the women’s singles finals to become the first Filipina SEAG champion since Maricris Fernandez in 1999.