Alex Eala draws first-round bye at Canadian Open

Alexandra Eala of the Philippines celebrates after winning a women’s singles match against Naomi Osaka of Japan on day six of the Mubadala DC Open 2026 at William H.G. FitzGerald Tennis Center on August 01, 2026 in Washington, DC. Emilee Chinn/Getty Images/AFP

MANILA, Philippines — Alex Eala got a first-round bye at the Canadian Open, which starts this week in Toronto.

The Filipino tennis ace, seeded 25th in the WTA 1000 event, will face either Alycia Parks or a qualifier in the second round.

READ: Alex Eala sees improved self ahead of rematch vs Jessica Pegula

Eala’s first meeting with Parks was in the first round of the Australian Open last January, succumbing to a 6-0, 3-6, 2-6 loss.

If Eala advances, she could face Wimbledon champion Linda Noskova, who has had the upper hand in their head-to-head. The Czech is 2-0 against Eala, whom she swept in the Berlin Open semifinals last June and Indian Wells round of 16 in March.

At the Canadian Open last year, Eala bowed out in the round of 128, losing to Marketa Vondrousova, 6-3, 1-6, 2-6.

The Rafa Nadal Academy graduate is currently competing in the Mubadala DC Open in Washington, where she just dispatched four-time Grand Slam winner Naomi Osaka, 6-4, 6-2 to reach her first career WTA 500 final.

Eala goes for the DC crown against world No. 3 and tournament top seed Jessica Pegula on Monday (Manila time) at 12 a.m.