Alex Eala reveals the real reason she’s skipping the China Open to play the Asian Games this year
Alex Eala’s time at the US Open has come to an end, but the star is set for a very busy end of the WTA Tour.
Eala has played plenty of tennis on the North American hardcourt swing, where she has arguably found the best form of her career so far.
The star won the Washington Open and followed it up by reaching the round of 16 of the Canadian Open, as well as the round of 32 of the Cincinnati Open.
The 21-year-old had her best-ever year at the US Open by reaching the third round, where she was beaten in three sets by her friend Iva Jovic.
She will now gear up for the WTA Tour’s Asian swing, but she is set to miss one of the biggest tournaments at the China Open in order to play the Asian Games.
In her US Open post-match press conference, Eala explained the reason she decided to represent her country instead of playing the Masters event.
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Speaking about her upcoming schedule, the Filipina star said: “Before that, I believe I’ll be in Singapore. But yeah, I love playing and competing with the Philippine team.
“You know, the SEA games, the Asian Games I’ve also done. I think it’s a really fun environment and I love being with the team especially this last SEA games in December.
“I had such a great time and I think they’re really memories that stick with me and and, you know, the Asian Games happens once every four years and I just found myself drawn to competing in that aside from other stuff.”
Eala has claimed six medals at the SEA Games while representing the Philippines, including a gold medal in the singles at the 2025 games in Thailand.
She has also claimed two bronze medals at the Asian Games in 2022, in the Hangzhou Games in both the singles and mixed doubles during the last games.
Eala did not play the China Open last year, so she will not be losing any ranking points at the Masters tournament.
However, she could be the subject of a fine for the WTA Tour as the tournament is one of the mandatory events that players are expected to play.
WTA Tour stars are expected to play every Masters event unless they are injured, as well as three of the WTA 500 tournaments throughout the year.
It is currently not clear if Eala will receive a WTA Tour fine, or even a points deduction, for playing the Asian Games instead of the China Open.
