{"id":19594,"date":"2026-09-07T11:09:53","date_gmt":"2026-09-07T06:09:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newspulse.com.pk\/en\/?p=19594"},"modified":"2026-09-07T11:09:53","modified_gmt":"2026-09-07T06:09:53","slug":"alexandra-eala-sets-sights-on-asian","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newspulse.com.pk\/en\/2026\/09\/07\/alexandra-eala-sets-sights-on-asian\/","title":{"rendered":"Alexandra Eala sets sights on Asian Games gold after US Open heartbreak"},"content":{"rendered":"

Alexandra Eala sets sights on Asian Games gold after US Open heartbreak<\/strong><\/h3>\n

MANILA: Philippine tennis sensation Alexandra Eala<\/a> is eagerly looking forward to representing her country at the Asian Games in Japan, where she is expected to be among the leading contenders for the women\u2019s singles gold medal.<\/strong><\/p>\n

The 21-year-old\u2019s Asian Games campaign comes shortly after a hard-fought third-round defeat at the US Open, where she was beaten in three sets by American teenager Iva Jovic in New York on Saturday.<\/p>\n

Despite the disappointment, Eala said she was excited about returning to the multi-sport event and competing alongside the Philippine delegation.<\/p>\n

\u201cI love playing and competing with the Philippines team,\u201d Eala said after her narrow defeat.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think it\u2019s a really fun environment, and I love being with the team. Especially during the last SEA Games in December, I had such a great time. I think they are really memories that stick with me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Eala has enjoyed a remarkable rise in international tennis since the previous Asian Games in Hangzhou, China, in 2023, where she claimed bronze medals in both the women\u2019s singles and mixed doubles events.<\/p>\n

Her fortunes have changed dramatically since then. Last month, she became the first player from the Philippines to win a WTA singles title, while her world ranking has climbed to No. 18.<\/p>\n

Her historic achievements have also transformed her into a major sporting star in the Philippines.<\/p>\n

Eala has considerable experience competing for her country, having been a regular participant at the Southeast Asian Games. She won the women\u2019s singles gold medal at last year\u2019s edition, further strengthening expectations surrounding her Asian Games campaign.<\/p>\n

China\u2019s Zheng Qinwen won the women\u2019s singles gold medal at the 2023 Asian Games on home soil, but she will not return to defend her title in Aichi-Nagoya.<\/p>\n

Japan\u2019s four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka will also miss the event as she is scheduled to compete at the China Open in Beijing.<\/p>\n

For Eala, the Asian Games carry additional significance. Winning the women\u2019s singles gold medal would secure an automatic qualification spot for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games, providing another major incentive for the young Filipino star.<\/p>\n

However, the tennis calendar could create a demanding schedule for Eala. She is scheduled to compete at the Singapore Open from September 21 to 27, while the Asian Games women\u2019s singles competition is also due to begin on September 21.<\/p>\n

With her rapid rise in the rankings, growing international experience and strong record in representing the Philippines, Eala will enter the Asian Games under considerable expectations as she targets the biggest title of her young career.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Alexandra Eala sets sights on Asian Games gold after US Open heartbreak MANILA: Philippine tennis sensation Alexandra Eala is eagerly looking forward to representing her country at the Asian Games in Japan, where she is expected to be among the leading contenders for the women\u2019s singles gold medal. The 21-year-old\u2019s Asian Games campaign comes shortly […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":19595,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2297,2305],"tags":[4060,4061],"class_list":["post-19594","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-latest-news","category-sports","tag-alexandra-eala","tag-philippine-tennis"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/newspulse.com.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19594","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/newspulse.com.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/newspulse.com.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newspulse.com.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newspulse.com.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=19594"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/newspulse.com.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19594\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":19597,"href":"https:\/\/newspulse.com.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19594\/revisions\/19597"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newspulse.com.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/19595"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/newspulse.com.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19594"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newspulse.com.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=19594"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newspulse.com.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=19594"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}