ALEXANDRA “Alex” Eala will play at the Macao Tennis Masters slated from Dec. 27 to 28, with the Filipino netter posting it on her Instagram story on Tuesday.
Led by International Tennis Hall of Fame inductees and former Grand Slam champs Li Na and Conchita Martinez, the tournament is played under exhibition format.
World No. 50 Eala is in the lineup that also features No. 9 Mirra Andreeva, and ATP players Shang Juncheng, Jack Draper and Jakub Menšík.
For the first day, the netters will play the “Captains’ Challenge” — two men’s singles matches and one mixed doubles match, while the second day will feature another “Captains’ Challenge” along with one women’s singles match, two men’s singles matches and the final awards ceremony.
As of writing, players haven’t been slotted in their respective groups yet with Li and Martinez serving as team captains.
“We had a lot of fun at last year’s tournament, and this year’s tournament will be just as exciting. Everyone is highly competitive, and with so many outstanding players participating, the tournament will definitely be even more thrilling,” Li said in the tournament’s website report.
“My team didn’t win the championship last time, so I will be more determined to turn things around this year. Although I have never played against Martinez before, I am ready to compete against her in Macao as captain. She has done a great job coaching Angeliva, but perhaps I should try to recruit Angeliva to my team, that would be an interesting twist.”
As for Eala and even Andreeva, the Macao Masters will serve as warm up for the 2026 season which will see the Filipino netter make her debut at the Australian Open set on Jan. 12.
Before the Macao Masters, Eala is expected to play at the Southeast Asian Games from Dec. 9 to 21 in Thailand.
Eala just had a breakout 2025 season which she started at 147th to a career-best 50th in the WTA rankings.
“My season comes to an end. I have no words to describe what 2025 has brought me. My dreams have truly come alive,” Eala captioned her Instagram post featuring a series of photos of her in the Tour on Nov. 4.
“It’s such a privilege to look back at this year and relive these amazing moments through memory. All that’s happened this season and the emotions that come with it is a love letter to my family, friends, team, every supporter across my journey in tennis, and of course, baby Alex.”
Eala said that this is just the beginning of what she hopes would be a fruitful Tour career.
“This marks the beginning of what I hope to be a long, happy and fruitful career on tour! Thank you, everybody! See you in 2026!”