Sourced online by Tracy Cabrera
MANILA, Philippines — Filipino tennis sensation Alexandra ‘Alex’ Eala faces a familiar test before she proceeds to battle it out in the first round of the United States Open against American Mary Stoiana, as she duels against Japan’s Naomi Osaka in a practice match later today.
The two ace netters meet anew, less than a month after Eala beat the Japanese star, 6-4, 6-2, in the semifinals of the Mubadala DC Open at the William H.G. FitzGerald Tennis Center Stadium Court in Washington, D.C. last August 2 (the current year).
The country’s pride eventually went on to rule the tournament with a 4-6, 6-4, 6-0 victory over American champion Jessica Pegula in the finals.
Awaiting Eala in the first round is Stoiana, currently ranked No. 122 in the world and set to make her US Open main draw debut.
Eala entered the main draw as the 17th seed, while Stoiana booked her spot after beating France’s Harmony Tan, 6-4, 6-3; Britain’s Katie Swan, 6(5)-7, 6-3, 6-3; and China’s Yue Yuan, 6-3, 4-6, 6-4, in qualifying.
A year after her breakthrough in the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) Tour, Eala has returned to the US Open as one of tennis’ brightest stars—this time with more fanfare and hype and higher expectations to match.
Last year, the Filipina rising star, then only 20 years old, made her main draw debut in the year’s final Grand Slam tournament and essayed a thrilling victory over Denmark’s Clara Tauson in their first round encounter.
Down 1-5 in the deciding third set, Eala leaned on the support of a raucous partisan crowd to pull off a 6-3, 2-6, 7-6 victory over the Danish standout.
Unfortunately, her US Open campaign ended in the second round against Moldovan-Spanish rival Cristina Bucșa. Still, her triumph over Tauson highlighted her breakout year in the WTA Tour.
Since then, Eala has taken her game at a higher level and this year she returns to Flushing Meadows as one of tennis’ most popular stars.
Now ranked No. 18 in the world and coming off her first WTA title in Washington DC, Eala is seeking to make a deeper run in the US Open.
Her match against Stoiana, though, has yet to be announced by tournament organizers.
