Alex Eala set to face Arianne Hartono at Guadalajara Open after historic US Open win

Filipina tennis player Alex Eala will start her campaign at the Guadalajara 125 Open in Mexico against Arianne Hartono of the Netherlands. The first-round matchup comes after Eala made history at the US Open by becoming the first player from the Philippines to win a singles main draw match at a Grand Slam in the Open era.

Eala, 20, is the tournament's second seed, behind Russia's Kamilla Rakhimova. She holds a 3-0 head-to-head record against the 29-year-old Hartono, who is currently ranked No. 158 in the world. Their most recent encounter was in January at the W100 Bengaluru event in India, where Eala won 6-2, 6-2. She also defeated Hartono 6-3, 6-3 in Canberra, Australia, in December 2024, and earlier in August 2023 outlasted her in Great Britain in a three-set battle, 7-6 (7-4), 2-6, 6-1.

The match in Guadalajara marks Eala's first competition since her second-round exit at the US Open, where she lost to Spain's Cristina Bucsa. Eala had previously secured a historic first-round victory over Denmark’s Clara Tauson in a comeback three-set win.

Ranked No. 75 in the live WTA rankings, Eala is seeking her first professional title of the year in the WTA 125-level event. Hartono, whose career-high ranking was No. 135, enters the tournament with a 17-22 win-loss record in 2025.

Eala’s participation in the Guadalajara Open will be followed by an appearance at the Sao Paulo Open in Brazil.