Alex Eala to face Hailey Baptiste in first round of Dubai Tennis Championships

Alexandra “Alex” Eala will take on American Hailey Baptiste in the Round of 64 of the Dubai Tennis Championships.

Baptiste entered the main draw as a lucky loser after falling to Rebecca Sramkova, 6-3, 7-5, in the second round of the tournament’s qualifiers.

Currently ranked world No. 39, the 24-year-old American reached the Round of 16 at last year’s French Open. She also advanced to the Round of 32 at this year’s Australian Open and at the 2025 Wimbledon, and made the Round of 64 at the 2025 US Open.

Eala and Baptiste previously faced each other in June 2025 during the qualifiers of the Eastbourne International, where Eala prevailed, 6-7, 7-6, 6-1.

The main draw of the Dubai Tennis Championships begins Sunday, with the Eala-Baptiste match scheduled at 7 p.m. local time (11 p.m., Philippine time).

Dubai marks the final stop of Eala’s Middle East swing before she heads to the United States in March, where she is included in the player list for the Indian Wells Open.

Last month, Eala reached the semifinals of the ASB Classic in New Zealand before she headed to Australia for the Kooyong Classic exhibition tournament, where she was named as champion.

She then made her Australian Open main draw debut but fell to Alycia Parks in the first round.

Following her Australian swing, Eala returned to Manila to compete in the Philippine Women’s Open, reaching the quarterfinals.

She then competed in the Abu Dhabi Open, advancing to the quarterfinals in singles and the semifinals in doubles alongside Janice Tjen.

Recently, Eala competed in the Qatar Open, where she exited in the first round after a loss to Tereza Valentova.

—JKC, GMA Integrated News