Alexandra Eala continues to gain worldwide attention for her impressive performances on the biggest stages of women’s professional tennis. The 20-year-old is the highest-ranked player from the Philippines and enjoys massive support from her country during her matches.
Just days after her famous Australian Open match against American Alycia Parks, the world No. 45 is again making headlines, but due to different reasons this time. Her schedule during the ongoing Abu Dhabi Open has raised eyebrows, sparking widespread discussion on social media.
Alexandra Eala’s Tight Abu Dhabi Open Schedule on Thursday
After her first-round defeat at the Australian Open against Parks, Eala participated in the Philippine Women’s Open, where she lost to the world No. 80 Camila Osorio in the quarterfinals. In the first two matches, the 20-year-old showed impressive form, dominantly beating Alina Charaeva and Himeno Sakatsume in straight sets.
Now, the Filipino is in the United Arab Emirates, where she is participating in the WTA 500 tournament, the Abu Dhabi Open. She opened her campaign by defeating the Turkish player Zeynep Sönmez 6-4, 6-3 in the round of 32 on Monday. Eala then beat the Belarusian Aliaksandra Sasnovich 2-6, 6-4, 7-6(5) in a thrilling three-set match after dropping the first set.
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She is now set to face the second seed of the tournament, the Russian player Ekaterina Alexandrova, in the quarterfinal today, Feb. 5. According to the official Abu Dhabi Open website, the match is scheduled for the evening at the Stadium Court and will not start before 5:00 PM local time.
What’s interesting is the tight scheduling clash between her singles and doubles matches, which are also scheduled for the same evening.
Eala is set to team up with Janice Tjen to face the duo of Zhang Shuai and Cristina Bucșa in the quarterfinals after their round of 16 win over the duo of Leylah Fernandez and Kristina Mladenovic on Tuesday, Feb. 3. According to the official website, this match is not expected to start before 7:00 PM local time, which is just two hours after her singles match.
So even if her singles match starts exactly at 5:00 PM local time, she will have to finish within 120 minutes and reach ADCB Court 1, where her doubles match will take place, creating a very inconvenient situation for the 20-year-old.
Eala’s Massive Crowd Support at the Australian Open
During her match against Parks at the Australian Open, the stadium was filled with Eala’s fans from the Philippines, who came to support their rising local star. Those who were unable to gain entry to the stadium due to the arena’s capacity restrictions were seated outside, watching the match live on digital screens. Interestingly, the Filipino took the first set 6-0, sending the crowd into an absolute frenzy of support. However, the American mounted an impressive comeback to secure a 0-6, 6-3, 6-2 victory after the bagel.
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Many fans on social media blamed the crowd for putting pressure on the youngster, causing her to lose her form and ultimately, the match. The same type of support was seen at the Abu Dhabi Open, where the stadiums were sold out during her matches. In the round of 16 match, where Eala won a tight three-set match against Sasnovich in a tiebreak, she saved a match point in the third set while trailing 5-2, and reeled off to win four consecutive points.
The immense support for Eala by the Filipino people at every tournament she participates in has proven equally beneficial and harmful to the youngster, providing mental strength and pressure at the same time. It would be interesting to see how she manages her time in the singles match to wrap it up more quickly and go to the doubles match.
