MANILA, Philippines — Bouncing back from an early exit in the Qatar Open, Alex Eala shifts focus to the WTA 1000 Dubai Championships in the United Arab Emirates from Feb 15-21 — her final stop in the Middle East swing.
Eala's Qatar Open run ended abruptly as she fell to Tereza Valentova 7-6 (6), 6-1 in the first round at the Khalifa International Tennis and Squash Complex.
The Filipino tennis star struggled to maintain her momentum against the Czech Republic's Valentova.
“Salamat, mga Kababayan! Talo ngayon pero tuloy pa rin ang laban! Bawi tayo sa susunod,” (Thank you, everyone. We may have lost today, but the fight continues. Let’s bounce back in the next one.) Eala wrote in Filipino on her Instagram story with a photo of her signing and interacting with her Filipino supporters.
This marks the second time the Filipina has lost to Valentova, following a lopsided 6-1, 6-2 defeat in the Round of 32 at the 2025 Japan Women’s Open last October.
The 20-year-old Filipina reached a new career-high of World No. 40 (1,244 points), and will try to reach a higher ranking in the Dubai Open. It will not be a walk in the park for the young tennis star in Dubai.
In the current list in WTA, tennis heavyweights World No.1 Aryna Sabalenka, who skipped the Qatar Open, is set to return, while World No. 2 Iga Swiatek is looking to add a Dubai title to her resume.
Mirra Andreeva also looks to defend her Dubai Open title, while 2026 Australian Open champion Elena Rybakina, World No. 3, aims to add more WTA titles to her belt.
The left-handed Filipina netter is in the qualifying list along with familiar foes Philippine Women’s Open champion Camila Osorio and runner-up Donna Vekic, Poland’s Magda Linette, and Spain’s Cristina Bucsa.
Eala’s run in Middle East gave her the boost to reach the Top 40 mark after finishing in the quarterfinals in the 2026 Abu Dhabi Open, and a semifinal berth in the doubles with Janice Tjen of Indonesia. In her Oceania swing, Eala reached the semifinals in the ASB Classic in Auckland and entered the main draw in the Australian Open but made an early exit after bowing to American Alycia Parks.
After her stint in Australia, Eala went to Southeast Asia and played her first-ever WTA 125 event in the Philippines, delighting her countrymen with a quarterfinal finish, then flew to the Middle East to start her campaign.
The Filipina is also expected to join the WTA 1000 Paribas Open in Indian Wells, California from March 4 to 15.