AT A GLANCE
Alex Eala returns to action on Monday, Feb. 3, when she competes in the L&T Mumbai Open in India.
Alex Eala returns to action on Monday, Feb. 3, when she competes in the L&T Mumbai Open in India.
The unseeded Eala is scheduled to face Japanese Sara Saito in the first round of the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA)125 event that offers a total cash purse of $115,000.
This isn’t the first time that Eala and Saito are meeting. A few days back, both players battled in the first qualifying round at the Singapore Tennis Open where the 19-year-old Filipina standout prevailed, 6-1, 6-7 (1), 7-5.
Eala, however, eventually lost in her next match against Swiss Simona Waltert in straight sets for a chance to earn a main draw berth.
While Eala boasts of a higher ranking at No. 134 in the WTA singles compared to Saito, who is 30 rungs below at No. 164, the Filipina bet remains wary of the Japanese following that tough duel the last time.
Prior to the Singapore tournament, Eala competed in the W100 Bengaluru in India the week before but lost in the second round of the qualifiers.
She opened the season with a semifinal finish at the Canberra 125 in Australia last January after going through a two-round qualifying, then went straight to play at the Grand Slams.
Also out campaigning in India is Philippines’ top doubles player Francis Casey Alcantara, as he teams up with Pruchya Isaro of Thailand in the Chennai Open Challenger.
Seeded fourth in the 32-pair field, the Filipino-Thai tandem is set to face Czech veterans Jiri Vesely and Dalibor Svrcina.
Alcantara, ranked No. 240 in the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) doubles, last played at the Nonthaburi Challenger in Thailand last month with Czech partner Zdenek Kolar where they finished in the quarterfinals.
