Alex Eala braces for tough draw in 2025 Australian Open qualifiers

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FOCUSED. Alex Eala gets ready to return a shot during the singles competition of the 2024 Koser Jewelers Tennis Challenge in Landisville, Pennsylvania.

Filipina tennis star Alex Eala hopes the third time is the charm in the Australian Open as she scraps for another main draw berth to begin her 2025 season

MANILA, Philippines – Alex Eala’s first real battle for the 2025 season will take place this week at the famed Melbourne Park as she takes on a familiar foe in world No. 136 Jana Fett of Croatia to start the Australian Open qualifiers on Tuesday, January 7, 7 am, Manila time.

The world No. 148 Eala continues to aim to be the first Filipina ever to take a main draw spot in a Grand Slam event. The 19-year-old phenom came close thrice in 2024 when she made the third and final qualifying rounds of the French Open, Wimbledon, and US Open.

Eala, though, has not had the same success in the Australian Open, failing to make it past the opening round of the qualifiers in 2023 and 2024.

The 2022 US Open junior singles champion will have her hands full right from the get-go in this year’s campaign against the 28-year-old Fett who just last year made the second round of the French Open main draw.

The two have played each other before in the second round of the 2021 W25 Manacor in Spain, as a then 16-year-old Eala lost to the former world No. 97 Croatian in three sets.

Both Eala and Fett saw action last week in the WTA 125 Workday Canberra International as the Croatian was ousted in the first round, while Eala won five matches, including two in the qualifiers, to advance to the semifinals.

The road to the main draw of the Australian Open, however, will be littered with danger for Eala who is among 128 hopefuls — 41 ranked higher than Eala — vying for the 16 available spots.

If the Filipina teen ace gets past Fett, she would face either world No. 211 Sinja Kraus of Austria, whom Eala defeated in straight sets last week in Canberra, or former world No. 43 Viktoria Hruncakova of Slovakia.

World No. 84 Alycia Parks of the United States is in the upper half of Eala’s draw and a potential opponent in the last qualifying round, assuming Eala makes it that far.

Parks is the top seed and highest ranked player in the qualifiers, and reached the third round of the 2024 Australian Open. – Rappler.com

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