By Joel Reyes

 

There was no Christmas break for Filipina tennis star Alex Eala as she continued her preparation for next month’s Australian Open. The 20-year-old Quezon City native participated in the Macau Tennis Masters, an exhibition event that featured fellow players Mirra Andreeva, Jerry Shang, Yibing Wu, Alejandro Davidovich Fokina and Ugo Humbert as well as coaches Conchita Martinez and Li Na. 

 

Here's a recap of Eala’s performances in Macau this past weekend. 

 

 

Alex Eala was the lone female participant in her mixed doubles match on Saturday after Mirra Andreeva pulled out of the contest due to sickness. Spain’s Alejandro Davidovich Fokina replaced Andreeva, teaming up with China’s Yibing Wu to face the pair of Eala and Jerry Shang.

 

That didn’t faze Eala and Shang, who put up a gallant stand against their all-male opponents. They narrowly lost to Davidovich Fokina and Wu, 5-7, 6-7 (1), earning the respect of the fans inside Macao Forum.

 

 

All eyes were on Alex Eala as she squared off against former world no. 5 Mirra Andreeva in Macau on Sunday. It was the first meeting between the two tennis stars since their 2022 US Open girls’ singles quarterfinals showdown in New York.

 

Many expected Eala to be stronger than Andreeva as the 18-year-old Russian missed the first day of the exhibition event due to illness. It was the other way around, though, as Andreeva recorded a convincing 6-4, 6-2 win over Eala.