(UPDATE) FILIPINO tennis sensation Alex Eala will play her first major match on home ground today, Jan. 26, taking on Alina Charaeva of Russia in the Round of 32 of the 2026 Philippine Women’s Open.
The historic WTA 125 event at the Rizal Memorial Tennis Center in Manila gives Eala’s local fans a chance to see her in action.
Match time is 10 a.m.
Charaeva, ranked 163rd in the world, peaked at No. 142 last Sept. 15 — a career-high mark.
Eala, No. 43 in the WTA ranking, remains grounded despite the ranking gap, saying that complacency has no place in the world of tennis.
“I take it match by match. I’ll do everything I can to win my first one. But if not, you know, it is what it is. That’s just how tennis is — you can’t win all the time,” she shared.
Eala and Charaeva have faced off before. They met in the Round of 32 of the 2020 ITF Spain, where Charaeva won 6-3, 6-3.
Eala was just 15 years old at the time.
“Yes, I have met her (in Spain). She’s a very nice person and a great player. So I’m just going to go, and I’ve done everything to prepare to the best of my ability. So I’m going to do my best,” Eala said.
Eala is trying to tone down the high expectations of her countrymen.
“Do you expect me to win the whole tournament? I don’t know. No. I mean, I think the fact that this is happening and the fact that I’m able to have a match at home is really the focus of the tournament,” she said.
“I never go in (a tournament) expecting to win the whole thing. So, although this is at home, my mindset in that sense is no different,” she said.
Having a home crowd cheering for her is a definite plus.
“Of course it’s an advantage. Playing home crowd is an advantage; that’s so special about playing at home, the crowd and the people that support you. Even in qualifiers match, you can see how many people are in the stands,” she said.
She appealed to her fans to be respectful to the players competing in the tournament.
Wildly cheering Filipinos filled the stands when she played at the Australian Open in Melbourne less than two weeks ago, prompting the umpire to warn the audience against making noise during rallies.
“Try to absorb as much as you can from this experience. It doesn’t happen very often here. I don’t think it’s ever happened before. I think if you keep an open mind and you enjoy while doing that, that’s the best thing that you can do,” she said.