Alex Eala faces a tough challenge at the Cincinnati Open, with Aryna Sabalenka waiting for her in the next round.
Rising tennis star Alex Eala faces a tough challenge in this year’s Cincinnati Open and may even come up against WTA World No.1 Aryna Sabalenka at the Masters 1000 event.
Alex is one of the most popular female tennis players right now, with fans cheering her on during the early part of the North American hard-court season.
At just 21, she made history as the first Filipina to win a WTA 500 title by beating Jessica Pegula in the Washington Open final earlier this August.
Although she didn’t have the same luck at the Canadian Open this week, losing to Switzerland’s Belinda Bencic in the round of 16, she will be back on court soon for the Cincinnati Open.
Alex got a first-round bye along with Sabalenka, Elina Svitolina, Naomi Osaka, and other top players. Her journey begins in the round of 64, where she will face the winner of the match between Magda Linette and Elena-Gabriela Ruse.
If she wins, she might meet Amanda Anisimova, who’s ranked 10th and has been a Grand Slam finalist twice, in the next round. After that, she could face Wimbledon champion Linda Noskova, who has won both of their past matches.
By the quarter-finals, Pegula, who Alex beat in Washington, could be waiting. And if she gets past Anisimova, a semi-final fight with two-time Grand Slam winner and 2026 Australian Open champion Elena Rybakina might be next. They’ve played twice before and each won once.
If Alex makes it all the way to the final, she could be up against the world’s top player, Sabalenka. Of course, this is just a possible outlook—tennis is full of surprises!
After Cincinnati, Alex will focus on the last major of the season, the US Open. There’s already some concern about how much tennis she’s playing. She’s entered the Singapore Open and might also play in Wuhan and Beijing.
Her uncle Noli, a sports executive, shared this on X on August 9:
“Many worry about Alex playing tough tournaments week after week. But as a top player, WTA rules require her to play all WTA 1000 events and Slams, adding up to 18-20 tournaments a year. So Canada, Cincinnati, Beijing, and Wuhan are musts, plus some WTA 500s. And this doesn’t even include her wish to play for the Philippines National Team. It’s the price of success.”