Eala seeks to end long SEA Games women's tennis spell

MANILA, Philippines – The spotlight on Alex Eala should be bright enough to pierce through the thick layer obscuring the title chase in women’s tennis in the Southeast Asian Games reeling off in a week’s time in Hanoi.

Win the gold and she snaps a more than two-decade long spell in the sport that nearly stymied the Philippines’ participation following the Philippine Olympic Committee’s suspension of the local tennis body for its failure to comply with an order from the ITF (International Tennis Federation) to amend its charter and hold elections for a new set of board members.

The ITF and the ATF (Asian Tennis Federation), however, decided to allow the Filipino netters to compete in the biennial regional sporting conclave.

What makes the Hanoi SEAG doubly special for the Filipina lefty, who has played in a number of top ranking junior and pro events worldwide, is that she’ll be donning the Philippine colors for the very first time in the event.

“It will be the first time that I will compete in the Games, which makes it extra special, while they are massively important across the region and mean so much to so many people,” said Eala in her latest blog.

“It is also another opportunity for me to represent the Philippines, something I love, and I definitely have the sense of playing for my nation and for something far bigger than just myself,” she added.

Eala is currently training with the rest of the national team at the Manila Polo Club, working double time to reach top form in time for the start of the competitions on May 13.

“We will bond further as preparations continue, putting ourselves in the best possible position to do well when the tennis event gets underway on 13 May,” she said. “I am back in full training now, having enjoyed a little break after returning to the Philippines from Spain. The rest gave me the chance to hang out with family, which is one of the best things about coming home and competing in Asia.”

Other members of the team are Marian Capadocia, Shaira Rivera and Janeila Rose Prulla, who are all products of the junior circuits put up by Palawan Pawnshop and Cebuana Lhuillier.

The men’s squad is composed of Treat Huey, Ruben Gonzales, Jeson Patrombon, Francis Alcantara and Eric Olivarez with Huey, Gonzales and Alcantara coming off a doubles title romp in their respective overseas sorties in the US and Egypt.

Huey and Gonzales won the ATP Savannah Challenge in the US while Alcantara teamed up with Colin Sinclair of Northern Mariana Islands to rule the M25 Cairo tournament in Egypt recently, making them A-ready for the SEAG, which also features the country’s perennial rivals Thailand.

Meanwhile, Eala said she is also motivated by her desire to at least duplicate her mom’s Rizza’s bronze medal effort in the 1985 Games in Bangkok.

“It is also incredibly meaningful to be following in the footsteps of my mom, who was previously a swimmer and competed at the 1985 Games in Bangkok, winning bronze in the 100m backstroke. I cannot wait to try and win for my country, just as she did. I am just super excited.”

Eala, who won her first pro title in Jan. 2021, is a two-time junior Grand Slam doubles champion and this year, she received funding through the ITF-administered Grand Slam Player Development Program, having previously been the recipient of ITF International Junior Player Grants.

She last competed in the Madrid Open, a WTA1000 event where she earned a wild card berth but lost in straight sets to world No. 68 Anna Bondar of Hungary.

But the experience only toughened up the 16-year-old rising star, saying: "Disappointment from losing is inevitable but I had so much hope and I had been working so hard for a chance like that, so I need to work on how to recover in such circumstances and how to keep my head up.”

“It is not every day that you get to join a Masters-1000 event and I was so grateful for the opportunity although, in the end, it was not my day and I lost 6-0 6-0,” she added.

“It felt like the chance of a lifetime at the time, and I have learnt that when something like that presents itself and doesn’t go your way, working out how to get back from it is vitally important,” said Eala.

Crucial will be her ability to raise her game to a higher level and deliver the elusive women’s tennis gold last won by Maricris Fernandez in the 1999 Games in Brunei.