Graphics by Dyric Espinosa

Filipina top seed Alexandra Eala opened her 2026 Asian Games campaign in dominant fashion, crushing Thailand’s Patcharin Cheapchandej, 6-1, 6-0, in the second round at Indoor C of the Higashiyama Park Tennis Center, September 28.

Eala was set to play on Center Court, but rain delays forced the tennis matches to be rescheduled and moved indoors.

“I think I performed pretty well,” Eala said, acknowledging the difficult conditions while noting that adapting was part of the competition.

The indoor setting did little to slow Eala as she controlled the court and dictated the match from the opening point.

Eala quickly built a 4-0 lead in the first set behind her powerful groundstrokes and aggressive play.

Cheapchandej managed to get on the board in the fifth game, but Eala answered with back-to-back games to close the set, 6-1.

The Filipina continued her dominant run in the second set, sweeping all six games to complete the 6-0 shutout.

Cheapchandej, 31, entered the match after defeating Pakistan’s Qureshi Mahin in the first round.

The victory marked Eala’s return to the Asian Games spotlight after she won two bronze medals in the 2022 edition in women’s singles and mixed doubles with Francis Casey Alcantara.

Eala also looks to build on her gold-medal finish at the 2025 Southeast Asian Games as she continues her campaign in Aichi-Nagoya.

Eala will next face Taiwan’s Joanna Garland, ranked No. 143 in the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) rankings, in the next round.

Article by Christian Octaviano