“If there’s one thing I learned in 2025, it’s that home is the people and not the place,” Alexandra Eala said, forming a heart with her hands as she faced a small but vocal Filipino crowd in Auckland — moments after rallying to open her 2026 campaign with a gritty comeback win.
The 20-year-old Filipina battled past former Top 20 player Donna Vekic, 4-6, 6-4, 6-4, on Tuesday in the first round of the ASB Classic, drawing on poise, defense, and the momentum of what she had called the previous day a “highlight of my career” — a doubles victory alongside close friend Iva Jovic over Elina Svitolina and Venus Williams.
Vekic, ranked No. 69 after a difficult 2025 season, controlled much of the opening set, turning early deficits into long baseline exchanges she finished with forehand winners. From 3-0 down, the Croatian won six of the next seven games to seize the frame and pressure the No. 4-seeded Eala.
Eala steadied in the second. Mixing depth with counterpunching, she produced one of the match’s defining points in the second game — scrambling on defense before flipping the rally in her favor to break for 2-0. The set swung back and forth from there, with Vekic saving two set points at 5-3 and breaking back, only for Eala to respond with another break to level the match.
The decider traced a similar pattern. Eala served for the match at 5-3 but double-faulted on a break point, allowing Vekic one last opening. This time, Eala slammed the door herself. On her first match point at 5-4, she uncorked a forehand into the corner, sealing the win after more than two hours and 40 minutes.
The victory followed Monday’s emotional doubles performance, which Eala said she replayed at her hotel to draw inspiration for singles. The support from Filipino fans — many waving flags and cheering her name — was again evident courtside.
“Home is the people,” she said in her post-match interview, nodding toward the stands. “Wherever I go, they make me feel like I belong.”
Eala advances to face Croatian Petra Marcinko in the second round in their first career meeting at the tour level. Marcinko, a fellow 2005-born former junior Grand Slam champion, rallied from 4-2 down in the third set to defeat Camila Osorio 6-4, 0-6, 7-6 (2) for her first WTA main-draw win since 2023.
Both players captured junior majors in 2022, Marcinko at the Australian Open and Eala at the US Open, setting up a matchup between two talents whose careers have continued to converge on the pro stage. FROM THE WIRES/WTA