Rising Filipina tennis star Alex Eala continues her climb up the world rankings as she gears up for the Japan Open scheduled from October 13 to 19.
Despite bowing out early at the WTA 125 Suzhou Open in China, Eala still ascended to a career-high ranking of No. 54, moving up four spots from No. 58. The 19-year-old lost a tightly contested match to Switzerland’s Viktorija Golubic, 2-6, 6-2, 7-6(0), but gained valuable ranking points that contributed to her upward movement.
Her recent participation in the WTA 1000 Wuhan Open also helped her ranking. Although she fell to Japan’s Moyuka Uchijima, 4-6, 6-3, 2-6, in the opening round of the qualifiers, Eala pocketed two ranking points and $5,260 in prize money.
Eala now turns her focus to the Japan Open, a WTA 250 event that she skipped last year. The tournament presents a bigger stage and tougher competition, featuring a star-studded field that includes Naomi Osaka, Elise Mertens, Iva Jovic, and Lois Boisson.
In her last Japan campaign back in 2023, Eala bowed to fellow qualifier Himeno Sakatsume in the first round. This time, she is looking to make a deeper run and continue her steady progress on the WTA Tour.
Osaka, one of the tournament’s main attractions, is coming off a hard-fought win at the Wuhan Open, where she rallied from a set down to defeat Fil-Canadian Leylah Fernandez, 4-6, 7-5, 6-3.
Following her stint in Japan, Eala is set to compete in the Guangzhou Open in China — the second of three WTA 250 tournaments lined up in her Asian swing. It will mark her third consecutive year playing in Guangzhou, where she successfully advanced through the qualifiers to the main draw in both 2023 and 2024.
