Eala officially listed for US Open
MANILA, Philippines — Alex Eala is all set for the season’s last Grand Slam.
The rising international tennis darling is officially listed in the US Open slated August 30 to September 13 in Flushing Meadows, New York, alongside the top-ranked players Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus and Jannik Sinner of Italy.
Eala is ranked No. 29 in the confirmed list for direct entries released by the US Tennis Association Wednesday albeit the seedings and the draw will be available in the Slam week.
At stake for Eala in the US major is the continuation of her magical run in Wimbledon, where she netted a bevy of firsts for Philippine tennis with her Round of 16 finish.
Eala was the first Filipina player to do it so, gaining 240 points to reach a new career-best WTA ranking of No. 28. She’s also the first to be seeded at No. 29 and the first Wimbledon match-winner in history.
Though Eala slipped a bit in the rankings at No. 29 this week due to inactivity after coming home in the Philippines with a series of fan meeting events, she will ride a massive momentum entering the US Open for also a goal of surpassing her second-round finish last year.
Eala then stunned World No. 15 Clara Tauson of Denmark in the US Open Round of 128 to become the first Filipina match-winner at any Grand Slam main draw prior to her Wimbledon breakthrough.
“I do want to get as far as I possibly can. Of course, the ultimate goal is to win right? But I will take it round by round,” said Eala in an interview with The STAR upon her homecoming last week.
But there will be more than just Eala shooting for the stars.
Sabalenka, still the undisputed No. 1 female player on Earth, has her eyes locked on a three-peat to become the first woman to win three straight US Open titles since Serena Williams from 2012-14.
She’s also out for a huge bounce back after a surprising early exit in the Wimbledon Round of 16 with a 6-2, 7-6 (7-2) loss to now World No. 13 Naomi Osaka of Japan.
Then there’s Sinner, who’s seeking redemption after losing to Carlos Alcaraz of Spain last year for a back-to-back Slam feat. He ruled Wimbledon this month over No. 2 Alexander Zverev of Germany.
Alcaraz, also the Australian Open but now No. 3 is hopeful for a comeback in the US Open after a wrist injury that sidelined him for the French Open and Wimbledon, and Zverev are also entered in the final Slam as strong challengers to Sinner’s bid.
In the women’s, all of the Top 30 players are entered except for No. 12 Victoria Mboko of Canada due to a knee injury.
Wimbledon champion Linda Noskova of Czechia, who zoomed to No. 7, is among the favorites alongside Australian Open champion Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan (No. 2) and French Open queen Mirra Andreeva of Russia (No. 5).
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