AFTER claiming her first win in the 2026 WTA Tour Asian swing, Alexandra “Alex” Eala seeks a quarterfinal berth at the 500 Ningbo Open in China.
Eala, ranked No. 20 in the world, will face No. 13 Diana Shnaider of Russia in the round of 16 on Wednesday.
Shnaider outplayed No. 66 Yulia Putintseva of Kazakhstan, 7-5, 7-6, on Tuesday afternoon to advance.
Ending her skid against lower-ranked players and regaining her form, Eala scored an easy win against world No. 34 Diane Parry of France, 6-3, 6-1, to begin her Ningbo Open campaign last Monday.
Prior to this victory, Eala suffered a string of upset losses against No. 180 Tatiana Prozorova in the Singapore Open round of 16, No. 85 Wang Xiyu at the Asian Games semifinal and No. 217 qualifier Shi Han at the Wuhan Open.
“I’m very happy with my performance. I think it was a really good first round, tough first round,” said Eala in the post-match court interview last Monday.
“Diane is a great player, and I think she’s had a really good year. Congrats to her for the year she’s done, and I’m really happy to be in the second round.” Giving up points against Shi with 37 unforced errors, Eala addressed that flaw and made just nine against Parry.
Eala also dominated in serve and break games with six apiece against Parry’s two in each category.
Finding her rhythm back, Eala found 63-percent success in service points won (29/46) against Parry’s 40 percent (18/45).
Should Eala get past Shnaider, she will likely face No. 12 Iva Jovic in the quarterfinals.
Eala hasn’t won against Jovic in three matches.
Receiving a bye in the first round, Jovic plays the winner in the round of 32 clash between world No. 35 Jasmine Paolini and No. 51 Anhelina Kalinina.
Obiena backs Eala
Olympian pole vaulter Ernest John “EJ” Obiena shared his perspective after some fans doubted Eala after a series of losses against lower seeded players.
“Even the greats lose. A bad competition, a losing streak, even a difficult season — sooner or later, every athlete faces them. Perfection can be objective, but nobody wins everything,” Obiena wrote on social media.
The two-time Asian Games gold medalist knew what it was like to be at rock bottom after stepping out of the Top 10 world pole vault rankings in 2025.
Obiena could not help but make the sports fans understand that losing does not define the hard work of the athlete.
“We are human. Athletes may sometimes be treated like gods. But we are not. We have good days and bad days, just like everyone else. One result cannot define a person,” he said.
He even urged the public that support should come with the highs and lows. ”Support matters. If you want to help Alex, me or any athlete, pick us up when we are down.” WITH REPORTS FROM NICOLE ANNE BUGAUISAN
