Alex Eala set for grand slam singles debut at 2025 French Open

Manila: Rising tennis star Alex Eala will make her long-awaited Grand Slam women’s singles main draw debut on Sunday (May 25) afternoon at the 2025 French Open.

The Filipina faces Colombia’s Emiliana Arango in a first-round matchup.

Eala, who turned 20 today (May 23), enters the tournament riding high on momentum and ranked a career-best World No. 69.

She was placed in Section 2 of the draw and will open her Roland Garros campaign against Arango, 24, currently ranked No. 88 and a three-time ITF champion with a career-high WTA ranking of No. 79.

The young Filipina earned her spot in the main draw following a stunning run at the Miami Open earlier this year, where she defeated three Grand Slam champions — Jelena Ostapenko, Madison Keys, and three-time French Open champion Iga Swiatek — en route to the semifinals.

That breakout performance propelled Eala into the WTA Top 70 for the first time and solidified her status as one of the tour’s most promising new talents.

Looking ahead, Eala could be on a collision course with China’s Qinwen Zheng — the same player who ended her campaign in the semifinals of the 2023 Asian Games.

Should Eala advance past the first round, she would face the winner of the Zheng vs. Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova match.

Elsewhere in the women’s draw, Swiatek, seeded fifth, headlines Section 4 and will open her tournament against Slovakia’s Rebecca Sramkova.

That section also features Grand Slam winners Emma Raducanu, who faces Xin Wang of China, as well as Ostapenko and Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina.

In other notable first-round matchups, Italy’s Jasmine Paolini will play Yuan Yue, while World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka opens against Kamilla Rakhimova.

Eala’s Italian Open doubles partner, Coco Gauff, seeded second, begins her campaign versus Australia’s Olivia Gadecki.