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Manila Bulletin devider Sports devider Eala, Mboko to face Fernandez, Shnaider in French Open doubles opener

Eala, Mboko to face Fernandez, Shnaider in French Open doubles opener

Published May 24, 2026 01:34 pm

At A Glance

  • This marks the first time that Eala and Mboko are teaming up in an WTA-level doubles event, although both players have faced each other in the past in the singles -- including in the 2022 US Open girls semifinals won by the Filipina, and the 2025 Hong Open won by the American.
File Photo Hong Kong Tennis Open Instagram
File Photo Hong Kong Tennis Open Instagram
Like in the singles, Alex Eala also faces an early test in the French Open women’s doubles after she and Victoria Mboko are drawn against Leylah Fernandez and Diana Shnaider in the opening round.
This marks the first time that Eala and Mboko are teaming up in an WTA-level doubles event, although both players have faced each other in the past in the singles -- including in the 2022 US Open girls semifinals won by the Filipina, and the 2025 Hong Kong Open won by the Canadian.
Eala, who just turned 21 last Saturday, May 23, has also previously faced Fernandez, a Canadian of Filipino descent, and Shnaider in the singles.
The two are bracketed in the upper half of the draw that has world No. 1 pair Katerina Siniakova and Taylor Townsend, fourth picks Gabriela Dabrowski and Luisa Stefani, and sixth seeds Cristina Bucsa and Nicole Melichar-Martinez, to name a few.
Jasmine Paolini and Sara Errani, however, will not defend their title.
Paolini is seeded 13th in singles but has opted out of the doubles draw, while Errani is teaming up with Austrian teenager Lilli Tagger in the lower half of the bracket.
Before her doubles endeavor, though, Eala would first play against close friend and 17th seed Iva Jovic in the singles opening round on Monday, May 24.
The draw has not been kind to Eala in the singles, too, as potential opponents farther in the draw include fellow Southeast Asian standout Janice Tjen, former Wimbledon semifinalist Donna Vekic, 2025 Australian Open quarterfinalist Emma Navarro, and multiple Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka, to name a few.

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Alex Eala Victoria Mboko French Open Roland Garros
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