THE Alexandra “Alex” Eala mania has officially reached Asia.
Ms. Eala treated her Asian fans with a jampacked meet and greet session on Thursday before all hell breaks loose for the start of the Asian swing in the WTA 500 Singapore Open, also serving as her final buildup for a much-awaited return in the Asian Games (Asiad) as the heavy title favorite in Nagoya, Japan.
“I have no words. I love you all,” said Ms. Eala, who was welcomed by Philippine Ambassador to Singapore Medardo G. Macaraig, in front of hundreds of fans ahead of her Round 2 duel against Russia’s Tatiana Prozorova at press time at the center court of the OCBC Arena inside The Kallang, Singapore’s massive sports hub for all sports disciplines.
Ms. Eala, WTA No. 18, headed straight into the Round of 16 due to a first-round bye as the No. 3 seed. A win against Ms. Prozorova, WTA No. 180, would push her to the quarterfinals against either China’s Wang Xinyu (WTA No. 40) or Chinese Taipei’s Joanna Garland (WTA No. 168).
Ms. Prozorova, 22, beat Belgium’s Sofia Costoulas (WTA No. 152) in Round 1 to advance.
The 21-year-old Filipina pride, now considered as one of the world’s hottest ticket and biggest crowd drawer, has filled every arena and stadium around the world this season during a banner year that catapulted her to inside the world’s Top 20 players, thanks to gallant finishes in the Wimbledon and US Open laced by titles in Birmingham and Washington.
Name it: from the US to Mexico and Canada to the Middle East and Europe, Ms. Eala has been the undisputed tennis darling as Filipinos, and new fans from different countries, rally behind her regardless of the results of her matches as per tournament organizers.
And Singapore, one of the Philippines’ neighbors for Ms. Eala’s stint closer to home, is no different as organizers had to transfer Ms. Eala’s meet and greet from Gate 6 to the bigger Gate 9 of the National Stadium to accommodate more fans.
“I don’t think we can ever be ready. It’s a surprise every day. You hear more and more,” said Co-Tournament Director Laura Ceccarelli on the jampacked Ms. Eala event that included a selfie opportunity, autograph signing on tennis balls, caps and Ms. Eala shirts, Q&A session, as well as an open workout at the nearby tennis court.
“We welcome the Filipino community to support their star player. This is something we create not only for the Singapore community, but for having that connection between athletes and fans,” added Co-Tournament Director Yazed Osman.
For Singapore that also got promoted from WTA 250 to 500 this year, it’s a sort of homecoming for Ms. Eala after being the recipient of the Li Na Inspiration Award there in 2016 and 2017 during her juniors days for the WTA Future Stars event.
But there’s more to it than just that for the lefty sensation, who will seek vengeance in Singapore after a 6-3, 6-2 loss to Simona Waltert of Switzerland in the qualifying round last year when she was still outside the Top 100.
Stronger, better and fiercer, Ms. Eala has high hopes to fulfill that mission for also a good momentum going into the Asiad right after the Singapore Open on Sept. 27 to Oct. 2 in Japan for a tall order of surpassing her two bronze medals in women’s and mixed doubles events in the 2023 Hangzhou Games.
Ms. Eala will play in the women’s singles and women’s doubles this time around in Asiad, billed as the player to beat for gold as the highest-ranked WTA player and especially with the absence of reigning gold medalist Zheng Qinwen of China.
By opting to play for flag in the Asiad, Ms. Eala faces a possible $10,000 fine from the WTA for skipping the China Open in Beijing, one of the mandatory 1000-level tourneys in the WTA Tour calendar on Sept. 30 to Oct. 11, but will play in the Wuhan Open on Oct. 12 to 18. — John Bryan Ulanday