MAKING her way to the final Grand Slam of the year, Alex Eala has been seeded No. 17 and drawn against a qualifier at the 2026 US Open in New York.
It is by far the highest seeding in a Grand Slam for the world No. 18, who enters a major as a seeded player for only the second time in her flourishing career.
READ Eala moves to No.18 in WTA rankings ahead of US Open
If she hurdles the qualifier in Quarter 3 of the draw headed by fourth seed Coco Gauff, Eala will face either Oleksandra Oliynykova or Reese Brantmeier in the second round, before potentially meeting Iva Jovic, Magda Frech, or Magda Linette in the third.
The qualifiers are still ongoing.
Paula Badosa, Zeynep Sonmez, Sara Bejlek, Cristina Bucsa and the in-form Gauff, who won the Cincinnati Open by beating Jessica Pegula in the final, stand as her possible fourth-round opponents in her quarter of the draw.
Should she reach the quarterfinals, Eala could run into Mirra Andreeva, Anastasia Potapova, Jelena Ostapenko, or Amanda Anisimova.
Opposite Quarter 3 is Quarter 1 headed by top seed and defending champion Aryna Sabalenka.
Eala surpassed her first-ever Grand Slam seeding of No. 29 in Wimbledon, where she reached the round of 16 in the best major run of her career.
She is now looking to improve on her second-round exit in Flushing Meadows last year, when she claimed her maiden Grand Slam main-draw win against Clara Tauson.
The US Open main draw begins play on August 30.
For the meantime, Eala will face Jovic in an exhibition match at Stars of the Open on Friday morning at 6 a.m. Manila time.
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