Alex Eala will finally make her debut at a Grand Slam, seeing action in the main draw of the French Open against a former tormentor in Colombia's Emiliana Arango.
It’s all systems go for Alex Eala.
The Filipina tennis star will seek payback and history when she battles fellow Grand Slam debutant and world no. 88 Emiliana Arango of Colombia at the 2025 French Open on Sunday, May 25 (PH time).
The 20-year-old Eala enters Roland Garros as the world no. 69, eager to avenge a tough loss to Arango in the 2024 Miami Open qualifiers where the Colombian stormed back for a 2-6, 7-5, 6-1 win.
Now on the clay courts of Paris, Eala hopes to flip the script against Arango in their opening-round clash pegged to start at 5:00 p.m. (PH time).
[ALSO READ: Alex Eala set to make Grand Slam debut as pro, slated for main draw in French Open]
After years of near-misses, Eala finally plays her first main draw in a Grand Slam. This was made possibe after Eala's sensational run earlier this, upsetting multiple Grand Slam winners at the Miami Open, including reigning French Open champion Iga Swiatek.
This bumped Eala's WTA ranking from 140 to 69, which is a career-high.
[ALSO READ: Alex Eala reflects on dream Miami Open run — ‘The real work starts now’]
Arango, meanwhile, broke into the WTA Top 100 in March after reaching her first tour final at the Mérida Open in Mexico.
The 24-year-old claimed her maiden WTA title at the Cancun Open in February, and enters the French Open following a second-round exit at the Parma Ladies Open in Italy.
The winner of Eala-Arango showdown will meet either world no. 8 and Olympic gold medalist Zheng Qinwen of China, or former French Open finalist Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova of Russia.
(With reports from Pao Ambat)
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[Editor's note: This article was written by a member of the One Sports Digital with the help of AI, and then checked by the staff to ensure accuracy.]