Eala opens French Open against ex-doubles partner

By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña

From friends to foes.

That will be the storyline of Alex Eala’s first stepping stone when the French Open Grand Slam event begins.

Now that the main draw and wild card entries are complete, the 20-year-old Filipina ace is ready to shine in the most prestigious clay court tournament of the year, but a familiar face will stand in her way in the first round scheduled for May 24, 2026, at Stade Roland-Garros in Paris, France.

Awaiting Eala in the Grand Slam’s blockbuster opener is American netter Iva Jovic, her ex-doubles partner at the ASB Classic in New Zealand and the WTA 1000 Indian Wells Open.

Although Eala and Jovic have yet to face each other in a singles match, both players are already familiar with their respective playing styles after spending some time training together over the past months.

Known for her aggressiveness in wearing opponents down by abusing her desired hitting angle on the baseline, Jovic possesses a fundamentally sound approach in going over the ball on first returns.

In contrast, Eala relies heavily on her huge left-handed forehand stroke and likes to gamble with a return-ace attempt on an opponent’s weak and flat second serve.

What separates them is their in-game shot variety, as Jovic hits back with a chunk of deep slices if in trouble, while Eala continues to pummel the ball with a topspin groundstroke.

Both players are coming off first-round exits at the Strasbourg Open.

Eala failed to capitalize on her 1-0 lead and received a reverse sweep from Ukrainian Oleksandra Oliynykova, 6-3, 5-7, 3-6, while Jovic lost to Emma Navarro, 4-6, 6-4, 1-6.

As partners, the tandem made noise during the ASB Classic when they pulled off a massive upset over living legend Venus Williams and world No. 7 Elina Svitolina, 7-6, 6-1.

The pair had the chance to qualify for the championship round, but the 1-2 punch of Xu Yifan and Yang Zhaoxuan proved to be too much, 5-7, 3-6.

Can Eala make up for her first-round exit in the Australian Open last January and take down Jovic to advance to the second round of her second Grand Slam stint?