ALEXANDRA “ALEX” EALA will begin her uphill journey to the WTA 1000 Qatar Open against a familiar foe in Tereza Valentova of Czechia in Round 1, looking for sweet revenge after bowing out with a sweep in the final.
The Doha tournament, the first WTA 1000 level event of the season, has already started on Sunday at the Khalifa International Tennis and Squash Complex where Ms. Eala was assigned to Day 2 against the qualifying match which ended up being Ms. Valentova.
Mrs. Valentova, the twin champions in both the 2024 French Open girls’ singles and doubles, fulfilled her top billing as the No. 1 qualifier by beating Aussie Arina Rodionova (WTA No. 210) 6-2, 2-6, 7-6(3), and (W) drew the German main to Ella.
“Thank you, Abu Dhabi. There was time. Next stop, Doha,” said Mrs. Eala on Sunday, sharing a series of beautiful views when he arrived in the capital of Qatar, including a photo with close friend Zeynep Sonmez from Turkey.
Mrs. Eala and Valentova tied for WTA rankings – Ms. Eala at number 45 and Ms. Valentova at No. 44 – making it one of the more interesting matchups in a 64-player main draw that includes a bevy of byes for top seeds.
Match time and court work are yet to be determined but the 20-year-old Filipina’s pride is not on her mind more than revenge after losing 6-1, 6-2 at the Japan Women’s Open last year.
Should Ms Eala pass the 18-year-old Czech’s test, she will likely face 2023 French Open finalist World No. 19 and Qatari No. 14 Karolina Muchova of Russia, who is competing against No. 35 Jaqueline Cristian of Romania in the Round of 64.
World No. 4 and reigning champion Amanda Anisimova (seeded 3) of the United States are then expected to await the third round of a loaded upper bracket that includes world No. 2 and Grand Slam six-time champion Iga Swiatek of Poland, No. 8 Jasmine Paolini of Italy, No. 10 Elina Svitovaia of Ukraine and No.
The best friends of Ms. Eala to Ms. Sonmez, WTA No. 49, and Janice Tjen of Indonesia, WTA No. 47, are also in the same bracket as the newly named Australian Open champion and No.
The left-wing sensation is expected to be fired up by a strong Filipino crowd and similar to the WTA 500 Abu Dhabi, where she defeated Ms. Sonmez en route to the quarterfinals and met Ms. Tjen for a double finish.
Abu Dhabi was the appearance of Ms. It’s her third consecutive start to the season with a bang after finishing in the last four at the WTA 250 ASB Classic in Auckland, New Zealand and the Last 8 at the WTA 125 Philippine Women’s Open.
It will be the first WTA 1000 tournament for Ms. Eala, who also had his Australian Open main draw and dominated the Kooyong Classic showdown in Melbourne last month, is a direct entry after a magical run to the 2025 Miami Open as a wild card.
That campaign marked by winning players like Ms. Swiatek, Madison Keys and Jelena Ostapenko – all Grand Slam champions – boosted Ms. Eala to enter the Top 100 and later the Top 50.
According to the WTA live rankings, Ms. Eala is currently ranked No. 40 leading Doha by 1244 points and could go higher given another deep campaign.
At stake in Doha is at least 65 ranking points and a $26,000 purse if Ms. If Alaa reaches the second round, they’ll probably get him in the Top 35. He’ll get 10 points and $18,300 for a first-place finish in the Top 40-45.
Mrs. Eala faces a busy time after Doha, returning to the United Arab Emirates for the Dubai Tennis Championships on Feb. 15 to 21 and Indian Wells (BNP Paribas Open) on March 4 to 15 before a grand return at the Miami Open on March 17 to 29. John Bryan Ulanday
