Alex Eala battles world No. 9 Mirra Andreeva in Macau to end stellar year

MANILA, Philippines – Alex Eala can end a scintillating year in style with a win over another top-10 player.

Eala plays for the last time in 2025 as she battles world No. 9 Mirra Andreeva of Russia in the MGM Macau Tennis Masters at the Macao Forum on Sunday, December 28.

Andreeva, 18, is the fourth-highest ranked player to face Eala this year after the Filipina beat world No. 2 Iga Swiatek and No. 7 Madison Keys then lost to No. 6 Jessica Pegula in her magical run in the Miami Open in March. 

The Eala-Andreeva match is part of the team event of the Macau Masters that pits the squads of Grand Slam champions Li Na and Conchita Martinez. 

Eala belongs to the team captained by 2011 French Open and 2014 Australian Open titlist Li, which also includes Ugo Humbert and Jerry Shang.

Martinez, the 1994 Wimbledon champion, leads Andreeva, Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, and Wu Yibing.

Eala will also play in the mixed doubles on Saturday, December 27, together with Shang as they go up against Andreeva and Wu. 

It will not be the first singles match between Eala and Andreeva after they tangled in the quarterfinals of the 2022 US Open girls’ tournament, with the Filipina coming out on top en route to a historic junior Grand Slam title.

The two have made great strides since as Eala reached a career-high ranking of No. 50 and claimed a breakthrough Grand Slam main draw win in the US Open. 

Eala also captured her first Southeast Asian Games gold medal this December, becoming the first Filipino to win the women’s singles title in the regional showpiece in 26 years. 

Meanwhile, Andreeva ruled a couple of WTA 1000 tournaments this year as she topped the Dubai Championships and Indian Wells Open, and went as far as the quarterfinals of the Wimbledon Championships.

A win over Andreeva should be an added confidence booster for Eala, who is gearing up for her first main draw appearance in the Australian Open in January. – Rappler.com