Alex Eala’s hunt for Asian Games gold starts today.
The first player in her way is Thailand’s Patcharin Cheapchandej. The top-seeded Eala meets the Thai veteran on Monday, Sept. 28, in the women’s singles round of 16 at the Higashiyama Park Tennis Center in Nagoya, Japan.
A Rain-Delayed Start
Philstar reported that Eala was scheduled for the third featured match on Centre Court, after a men’s singles match set for 9 AM (Manila time) and a women’s doubles match.
Rain in Nagoya on Monday morning pushed the schedule back, according to posts by Philstar and ABS-CBN News on their official Facebook pages.
ABS-CBN News later posted that, according to the latest order of play, the match was moved to the Show Court and would start “not before 2 p.m.” Japan time (1 PM PHT).
On Paper, a Big Edge
Eala, 21, had a first-round bye as the top seed.
Philstar reported that the world No. 18 sits 492 places higher in the WTA rankings than Cheapchandej, a 31-year-old whose career high is No. 356. Inquirer listed Cheapchandej as world No. 510.
Eala also holds the head-to-head edge. She beat Cheapchandej 6-3, 6-4 in the round of 16 of the 2022 ITF W25 tournament in Chiang Rai, Thailand, on her way to that title, Philstar reported.
Cheapchandej reached this round by beating Pakistan’s Mahin Aftab Qureshi 6-1, 6-1.
Coming Off a Setback
Eala arrives in Nagoya after a shock loss in the Singapore Open to Russia’s Tatiana Prozorova (world No. 180), 6-4, 5-7, 3-6, Inquirer reported.
She also dealt with two flight delays from Singapore before going straight to practice with teammates Tenny Madis and Stefi Aludo.
“I think I have as big a chance as any other person [in] the draw,” Eala had said after the Singapore loss, according to Inquirer.
“I think once you compete and, like I said, once you’re in the draw, you have a chance so I’ll do my best.”
Inquirer noted that many of the region’s top players chose to play the China Open in Beijing instead, “with WTA sanctions looming.”
What’s at Stake
Eala won bronze at the 2023 Hangzhou Games.
This time she is chasing the Philippines’ first Asian Games tennis gold since Johnny Jose won the men’s singles 44 years ago, Inquirer reported.
According to Inquirer, winning the Asiad gold could also earn her automatic qualification for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
She is now the country’s only hope in women’s singles. Madis lost 6-1, 6-0 to Japan’s seventh seed Himeno Sakatsume on Sunday, Philstar reported.
Eala is also playing women’s doubles with Shaira Hope Rivera. Their first-round opponents are Hong Kong’s Lai Ching Laam and Kallista Liu, and the winners face China’s third-seeded pair of Xinyu Jiang and Zhaoxuan Yang, according to Philstar.
