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| SEA Games champ Alex Eala will battle Paris Olympics runner-up Donna Vekic in Auckland, and they could meet again in Manila later this month. Cesca Rampas (file photo) |
QUEZON CITY--If fate allows it, Alex Eala could find herself battling Croatian tennis star Donna Vekic at home in the inaugural Philippine Women's Open.
Vekic, currently ranked 69th in the world, is part of a provisional list of players who could see action at the Rizal Memorial Tennis Stadium in Manila for the said event at the end of the month.
While Eala, currently 53rd in the world, may have a better WTA ranking than her at the moment, Vekic's resume is nothing short of splendid.
Vekic got her first WTA Tour championship back in 2014 in Malaysia at just 18 years of age and would later win three more.
Ten years later, Vekic had her banner season, making the semifinals of Wimbledon and the final of the Paris Olympics, eventually capturing silver.
The stellar 2024 catapulted Vekic, now 29, to a career-high 17th place in the WTA rankings at the start of 2025.
However, last year was more of a so-so year for her as she found less success following a fourth-round exit in the Australian Open, all the more so that she let go of former coach Pam Shriver in June.
While Vekic could make it to Manila anyway, Eala can only secure her slot as a wildcard.
Eala can only activate the wildcard clause if she exits early in the Australian Open, whose second week actually coincides with the dates for the Philippine Women's Open, a WTA 125 event.
As it turns out, though, Eala will get to face Vekic after all, as they were paired for a first-round clash in the ASB Classic in Auckland.
Eala, who enjoyed her own banner season last year, is tipped as the favorite on paper as she is seeded fourth in the WTA 250 tournament, which serves as a warm-up for the Australian Open.
Interestingly enough, Eala is primed for a possible quarterfinal showdown with former world number 1 Venus Williams.
Williams, given a wildcard spot in the ASB Classic, will have to go through fifth-seeded Magda Linette first and the winner of another round of 32 clash between Alycia Parks and Elsabetta Cocciaretto to make the Last 8.
Eala, assuming she beats Vekic, will also need to win against whoever prevails between Camila Osorio and Petra Marcinko to make the possible blockbuster clash happen.
Meanwhile, another player to watch out for in the Philippine Women's Open is world number 41 Tatjana Maria of Germany.
Maria, aged 38, made history last year when she became the oldest player to win a WTA 500 title, ruling the Queens Club Championship.
Also seeded in the tournament is China's Wang Xinxu, one-half of the 2023 French Open women's doubles champions.
Indonesia's Janice Tjen was also given a wildcard slot in the PH Women's Open in case she too exits early in the Australian Open.
Meanwhile, Philippine Sports Commission chairman Pato Gregorio said that they had to forgo their holiday break to fast-track preparations for the PH Women's Open.
"Twenty-two days to go before WTA 125. So no Christmas break, no New Year break. No holiday break. Everybody's here, PHILTA is here, [PSC] Commissioners, PSC people are here," said Gregorio, who inspected the ongoing furbishing of one side of the Rizal Memorial Tennis Center.
To make room what would be the center court for the tournament, bleachers are being constructed at the two side courts of the Rizal Memorial Tennis Center.
