Chasing her ‘best version,’ Alex Eala reaches Asian Games semis for sure medal - Rappler
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CROWD DARLING. Tennis player Alex Eala in action for the Philippines in the 2026 Asian Games.
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MANILA, Philippines – As much as Alex Eala is the favorite to win the gold medal in the Asian Games, she remains mindful of the possibility of losing.
Upsets in tennis are not uncommon, with the world No. 18 Filipina fresh from a surprise exit in the Singapore Open, where she fell to Russia’s Tatiana Prozorova in a defeat that marked the first time she lost to a player outside the world top 100 since she broke into the top 50.
But that understanding has kept Eala at the top of her game as she assured herself of a medal in the 2026 Asian Games after advancing to the semifinals of the women’s singles event following a 7-5, 6-0 win over Chinese Taipei’s Joanna Garland at the Higashiyama Park Tennis Center on Wednesday, September 30.
“And at the end of the day, being a professional tennis player and a competitive tennis player, losing comes. You have to understand that losing is part of the job and losing is always a possibility,” Eala said after the match.
“That’s what makes tennis so difficult, that’s what makes tennis so exciting, is that you never know what’s going to happen and you can’t let your guard down. I think that also contributes to my pursuit for excellence and my pursuit for the best version of myself.”
Ranked 143rd in the world, Garland held her own against the top-seeded Filipina in the first half of the match that took 1 hour and 49 minutes to finish, even grabbing a 5-4 lead to move on the brink of stealing the opening set.
But Eala found another gear, winning the next three games to clinch the first set and dominate the rest of the way.
Eala won nine consecutive games in total as she served her second bagel of the Asian Games after opening the tournament with a 6-1, 6-0 shellacking of Thailand’s Patcharin Cheapchandej on Monday, September 28.
“I ended the match playing better than I started, which is always a good thing,” Eala, who secured at least a bronze, told Cignal. “Really happy with the win.”
Eala took home a bronze in the 2023 edition, where she lost in the semifinals to eventual champion Zheng Qinwen of China.
This time, Zheng is not around, as well as other top Asian players in world No. 1 Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan and No. 17 Naomi Osaka of Japan as they opted to see action in the China Open, leaving Eala as the leading gold-medal contender.
Eala shoots for a spot in the final as she battles world No. 49 Wang Xiyu of China next. – Rappler.com
