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Manila Bulletin devider Sports devider PHILTA pins hopes on Eala's SEAG participation

PHILTA pins hopes on Eala's SEAG participation

Published Jul 29, 2025 11:35 pm
(Alex Eala's Facebook post)
(Alex Eala's Facebook post)
The Philippine Tennis Association (PHILTA) is pinning its hopes that Alex Eala could join the team and participate in the 33rd Southeast Asian Games set in Thailand this December.
The last time Eala suited up for the Philippines in the biennial meet was in 2022 in Hanoi, Vietnam where she won three bronzes in three events – singles, mixed doubles, and team.
Then only a 16-year-old athlete, Eala was already making big strides thanks also to her exposure in junior circuits in Europe and the US.
The local tennis body could only wish for the world No. 65 player to make some room for the SEA Games schedule and give the country a fighting chance for gold.
“She’s just trying to fit into her schedule, but she seems very excited,” said PHILTA executive director Tonette Mendoza in Tuesday’s PSA Forum which was presented by San Miguel Corporation, Philippine Sports Commission, Philippine Olympic Committee, MILO, Smart/PLDT, and the country’s 24/7 sports app Arena Plus.
“So we really hope she can fit it in, because, as you know she is now in the Top 60, so she’s really trying to change her program considerably from when she first made her plan in January, so in December it’s already preparation for the Australian Open,” she added.
Time is surely an enemy for Eala as the Australian Open usually begins in January to kickstart each Grand Slam season per year.
“So we’re really hoping she can play for the Philippines, so let’s all pray that she does,” Mendoza stressed.
The last time that the Philippines won a gold in women’s singles event was in 1999 Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei SEAG where Maricris Fernandez-Gentz, the country’s former best female tennis ace in the 90s, topped the said competition.
Evangelina Olivarez and Francesca Maria La'o, meanwhile, delivered the latest gold of the Nationals in the women’s doubles way back in 1993 Singapore iteration.
Currently, the 20-year-old lefty, who turned heads on the grass courts of Europe last month, continues to gear up for her main draw debut in the US Open by joining three WTA1000 competitions – Cincinnati, Monterrey, and the ongoing National Bank, where she bowed to Czech Marketa Vondrousova in the first round.

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