{"id":2121085,"date":"2026-08-31T21:30:17","date_gmt":"2026-08-31T18:30:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=2121085"},"modified":"2026-08-31T21:30:17","modified_gmt":"2026-08-31T18:30:17","slug":"alex-eala-gets-candid-us-open-verdict-as-former-world-no-4-lauds-the-filipina-star","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=2121085","title":{"rendered":"Alex Eala gets candid US Open verdict as former world No 4 lauds the Filipina star"},"content":{"rendered":"<article class=\"ps-article-content rounded-lg lg:mt-5 lg:border lg:border-card lg:bg-card lg:shadow-primary\">\n<header>\n<h1 class=\"py-4 text-xl font-normal text-title sm:text-2xl\">Alex Eala gets candid US Open verdict as former world No 4 lauds the Filipina star<\/h1>\n<div class=\"my-2 flex items-center justify-between\">\n<div class=\"flex items-center\">\n                        <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tennis365.com\/author\/ewan-west\" class=\"text-sm font-normal !text-author\"><br \/>\n                            Ewan West                        <\/a><br \/>\n                        <time class=\"ml-3 text-sm font-normal text-info md:ml-4\" datetime=\"31 Aug 2026 10:30 PM\" data-ps-date=\"31 Aug 2026 10:30 PM\" data-ps-datetime=\"1788211817\"><br \/>\n                            31 Aug 2026 10:30 PM                        <\/time>\n                    <\/div>\n<div class=\"hidden justify-end space-x-4 text-xl sm:flex sm:!opacity-100\">\n                        <a href=\"https:\/\/google.com\/preferences\/source?q=tennis365.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\"><br \/>\n                            <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"mx-auto !my-0 hidden dark:block h-6\" src=\"https:\/\/www.tennis365.com\/content\/themes\/tennis365-sportsui\/img\/png\/preferred_source_badge_dark.png\" alt=\"Add as a preferred source on Google\" width=\"76\" height=\"24\"><br \/>\n                            <img 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href=\"https:\/\/google.com\/preferences\/source?q=tennis365.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\"><br \/>\n                            <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"mx-auto !my-0 hidden dark:block h-6\" src=\"https:\/\/www.tennis365.com\/content\/themes\/tennis365-sportsui\/img\/png\/preferred_source_badge_dark.png\" alt=\"Add as a preferred source on Google\" width=\"76\" height=\"24\"><br \/>\n                            <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"mx-auto !my-0 dark:hidden h-6\" src=\"https:\/\/www.tennis365.com\/content\/themes\/tennis365-sportsui\/img\/png\/preferred_source_badge_light.png\" alt=\"Add as a preferred source on Google\" width=\"76\" height=\"24\"><br \/>\n                        <\/a><br \/>\n                        <button id=\"t365-article-share-btn-hidden\" class=\"mr-2 hidden h-6 w-6 appearance-none border-none !text-share-icon outline-none hover:!text-share-icon-active sm:hidden\" data-title=\"Alex Eala gets candid US Open verdict as former world No 4 lauds the Filipina star\"><\/p>\n<p>                        <\/button>\n                    <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/header>\n<div class=\"-mx-3 sm:-mx-5 border-b border-page\"><\/div>\n<section>\n<div class=\"-mx-3 sm:-mx-5\">\n<figure class=\"aspect-h-9 aspect-w-16 relative\">\n                                        <img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1320\" height=\"742\" loading=\"eager\" class=\"w-full h-full object-cover object-center !my-0\" src=\"https:\/\/d2me2qg8dfiw8u.cloudfront.net\/content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Alex-Eala-practice-1320x742.jpg\" alt=\"Alex Eala in a practice session at the US Open\">                <\/figure><figcaption class=\"flex items-center space-x-3 border-b border-mobile-caption px-3 lg:border-caption\">\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"my-1.5 break-words !text-xs !text-content\">\n                                Alex Eala in a practice session                            <\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<div class=\"ciam-article-t365\"><!-- Article Start --><\/p>\n<p>Alex Eala has been hailed as an \u201cunbelievable competitor\u201d and identified as a dangerous contender at the 2026 US Open by a former world No 4.<\/p>\n<p>The world No 18, who is seeded 17th at Flushing Meadows, will begin her US Open campaign against Mary Stoiana on Tuesday.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.tennis365.com\/tag\/alex-eala\">Eala<\/a> is making her second main draw appearance at the US Open after she reached the second round last year.<\/p>\n<p>The Filipina will aim to improve on her fourth round result at the 2026 Wimbledon Championships, which is the best Grand Slam run of her career to date.<\/p>\n<p>The 21-year-old could face a tricky path through the draw in New York as she is projected to meet 14th seed Iva Jovic in the third round and No 4 seed Coco Gauff in the last 16.<\/p>\n<p>Speaking to Sky Sports, Tim Henman named Eala as his \u2018dark horse\u2019 pick in the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tennis365.com\/us-open\">US Open<\/a> women\u2019s event.<\/p>\n<p>\u201c[Eala is an] unbelievable competitor,\u201d said the former British No 1.<\/p>\n<h2>More US Open News<\/h2>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.tennis365.com\/tennis-news\/alex-eala-schedule-decision-asian-games-wta-1000-tournament-beijing\"><strong>Alex Eala set to miss a big tournament as she eyes a historic Philippines feat<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.tennis365.com\/tennis-news\/alex-ealas-popularity-usopen-social-media\"><strong>Alex Eala \u2018has created a movement\u2019 continues to serve up incredible numbers ahead of the US Open<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Want more from Tennis365? Add us as <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/preferences\/source?q=tennis365.com\" target=\"_blank\">a preferred source on Google to your favourites list<\/a> for tennis coverage you can trust.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe improvement she\u2019s made in her game, and add to that the support that she has, she really is great to watch.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI love her attitude and that spirit. So, as an outsider, I\u2019m very happy with that pick.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Henman also selected world No 1 Aryna Sabalenka \u2014 the two-time reigning US Open champion \u2014 as the favourite for the title.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShe hasn\u2019t been playing particularly well, but I think a player of her stature, when she gets to the Grand Slams and the biggest and best events, you find that there\u2019s an extra gear to her game and there\u2019s also an extra intensity to her focus and concentration,\u201d said Henman.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou go back to that old saying: Form is temporary, class is permanent.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>In her pre-tournament press conference, Eala spoke about the strong belief she has.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI think I have a pretty strong baseline of belief in myself. And of course, it can all, it\u2019s very normal that it fluctuates,\u201d said Eala.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere are moments where it\u2019s more difficult to believe in yourself. And there are moments where it\u2019s much easier. But I think my baseline has remained quite steady, and maybe on an incline, but a very, very, very slow incline.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI think that\u2019s what\u2019s important is to have that foundation of, I know what I can do, I\u2019m strong, who I am as a person, what my character is. And then of course, the results may vary, depending on the time of the year and how you\u2019re doing at the moment.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>READ NEXT: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tennis365.com\/tennis-news\/live-wta-rankings-elena-rybakina-no-1-alex-eala-no-17-emma-raducanu-14\">Live WTA Rankings: Elena Rybakina No 1, Alex Eala No 17, Emma Raducanu -14<\/a><br \/>\n<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><!-- Article End --><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/article>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Alex Eala gets candid US Open verdict as former world No 4 lauds the Filipina star Ewan West 31 Aug 2026 10:30 PM Alex Eala in a practice session Alex Eala has been hailed as an \u201cunbelievable competitor\u201d and identified as a dangerous contender at the 2026 US Open by a former world No 4. [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[226,249],"class_list":["post-2121085","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-crawlmanager","tag-tennis365-com"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2121085","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2121085"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2121085\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2121085"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2121085"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2121085"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}