MANILA, Philippines — Filipina tennis star Alex Eala received a first-round bye at the Cincinnati Open, allowing her to begin her campaign in the Round of 64 at the WTA 1000 tournament.
Eala, currently ranked No. 20 in the world, was also named the No. 17 seed in the tournament. This marks the third time in her last four tournaments that she has entered a competition as a seeded player, following her appearances at Wimbledon and the Canadian Open.
The Cincinnati Open marks Eala’s debut in the prestigious WTA 1000 event, which serves as one of her final tournaments in preparation for the US Open.
Eala reached the Round of 16 at the Canadian Open before her campaign ended. In Cincinnati, she will face the winner of the opening-round match between Romania’s Elena-Gabriela Ruse and Poland’s Magda Linette, who are scheduled to meet in the Round of 128 on Thursday.
The Cincinnati Open features several of the world’s top-ranked players, including No. 1 seed Aryna Sabalenka, Elena Rybakina, Jessica Pegula, Coco Gauff and Mirra Andreeva.
Poland’s Iga Swiatek is the defending champion after defeating Rybakina in the semifinals and sweeping Italy’s Jasmine Paolini in the final.
