MANILA, Philippines — Filipino tennis ace Alex Eala renews her partnership with American legend Venus Williams for the WTA 500 Mubadala DC Open slated from July 27 to August 2 in Washington D.C., United States.
The tournament's social media pages announced on Friday night that Eala and Williams received a wildcard entry for the doubles tournament.
The 21-year-old Eala and the 46-year-old Williams last teamed up at the Bad Homburg Open in Germany where they reached the quarterfinals last month.
Eala and Williams defeated Alexandra Osborne and Catherine Harrison in the first round (round of 16), 6-3, 6-4, before falling to Olivia Nicholls and Tereza Mihalikova, 3-6, 2-6, in the quarters.
A 7-time Grand Slam singles champ and a 14-time major doubles titlist, Williams called Eala her best partner.
“The best ride, the best tournament. The best partner!” Williams wrote on her Instagram story.
Eala likewise relished their partnership.
“Never in my wildest dreams would I have thought that I’d have the privilege of competing alongside you on court, Venus Williams! Immensely grateful to learn from you,” Eala wrote on her Instagram account.
Eala made her last doubles stint at Wimbledon where she and Czech partner Nikola Bartunkova fell to Jelena Ostapenko and Sofia Kenin in the first round, 6-3, 3-6, 1-6.
Williams was supposed to compete in the same tournament but withdrew after her sister and tennis women's greatest Serena sustained a right knee injury after her singles first-round loss to Maya Joint.
Venus and Serena were the Wimbledon doubles champion in 2016.
Meanwhile, Eala will also compete in the Mubadala singles division which will mark her return after a 3-week break and a historic Wimbledon run.
Eala became the first Filipino singles player to reach the fourth round of the London grass major in both the amateur and Open eras.
