By el Amigo
MANILA, Philippines — Filipino tennis ace Alexandra “Alex” Eala begins her Cincinnati Open campaign Saturday against a familiar opponent, Romania’s Elena-Gabriela Ruse, as she looks to build on her remarkable run on the North American hard courts.
Eala, the No. 17 seed in the WTA 1000 tournament, received a first-round bye and will face Ruse in the Round of 64 at the Lindner Family Tennis Center in Mason, Ohio.
The matchup offers Eala an opportunity to avenge an earlier defeat to Ruse, who eliminated the Filipina during the 2024 US Open qualifying tournament.
Eala enters Cincinnati with considerable momentum after winning her maiden WTA singles title at the Washington Open earlier this month. She followed that breakthrough by reaching the Round of 16 at the Canadian Open, where she bowed to Switzerland’s Belinda Bencic, 6-4, 6-0.
Her victory in Washington marked another milestone in Eala’s rapid rise on the international tennis scene, establishing her as the first Filipina to win a WTA Tour singles title.
The 21-year-old Filipina has also been one of the busiest players among the WTA’s Top 20 this season, a reflection of the packed schedule that has accompanied her breakthrough year.
The Cincinnati tournament serves as an important final test before the US Open later this month.
With Filipino fans again expected to provide strong support from the stands, Eala will try to extend her impressive hard-court run and add another major victory to her rapidly growing résumé.
elamigo/xf
