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Alex Eala will kick off her US Open bid with the star-studded mixed doubles event. —KEATS LONDON
The moment she crashed the top 20 of the WTA world rankings, Alex Eala knew things would only get tougher from that point.
“The gap [between ranking spots] is much wider,” she said.
She’ll have to work double time to keep her momentum going, and the US Open will provide her opportunities to do so as she competes in mixed doubles and singles at the Flushing Meadows in Queens, New York.
READ: Alex Eala rises to WTA World No. 18 ahead of US Open
Eala, who moved two spots up the world ranking at No. 18 on Monday, is paired with Felix Auger-Aliassime in mixed doubles and the two are set for a clash against the husband-and-wife tandem of world No. 9 Elina Svitolina and Gaël Monfils on Tuesday morning (Manila time).
The Filipino superstar and the Canadian world No. 4 have a lot to fight through if they want to win the $1 million top prize of the event, as they have been drawn in the same bracket as women’s No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka and 24-time Grand Slam winner Novak Djokovic, the mixed doubles top seeds.
Valuable time
Sabalenka and Djokovic will open against Canadian-Filipino Leylah Fernandez and Frances Tiafoe with the winner advancing to the quarterfinals to face either Eala and Auger-Aliassime or Svitolina and Monfils.
The mixed doubles event will provide Eala valuable court time as she pursues her first Grand Slam singles trophy starting on Sunday in New York.
The draw for the singles will drop three days before the main-draw matches begin. The qualifying round for singles has already started.
READ: Alex Eala begins US Open training at Arthur Ashe Stadium
“I think what’s great is [playing in mixed doubles] keeps you in that competitive mindset,” Auger-Aliassime said in a TV interview. “It’s different [from] when you’re kind of relaxed in training, and you’re doing appearances and sponsor stuff.”
“It’s different when you’re out there on the court and someone’s trying to beat you,” the Canadian star, who said he is excited to get a taste of the “Eala Effect,” added. “To stay in touch with that [competitive mindset] during the week with the mixed doubles, that is also not as much pressure as the singles, I think is a great thing.
“Everybody’s playing the part, everybody is super competitive. So I think I’m going to love it out there.”
Auger-Aliassime will certainly enjoy the opportunity to play behind a large and supportive crowd that turns up in arenas all over the world every time Eala sees action.
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“It’s kinda funny because she’s younger than me, but I feel like she has the fan base and she’s carrying the crowd,” he said. INQ
