WITH hopes of going farther and further, Alex Eala reunites with world No. 18 Iva Jovic for doubles play at the WTA 1000 BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, California.
The 20-year-old Filipina teams up anew with her American partner in the WTA 250 ASB Classic, where they reached the semifinals prior to Eala’s Australian Open debut.
In Auckland, Eala and Jovic stunned former Grand Slam champions Venus Williams and Elina Svitolina in the opening round. They advanced via a quarterfinal walkover against Jesika Maleckova and Renata Zarazua before falling to doubles specialists Xu Yifan and Yang Zhaoxuan in the semis.
Indian Wells marks Eala’s fourth doubles appearance this season following campaigns in Auckland, the Australian Open, and Abu Dhabi — where she also made the semifinals alongside Janice Tjen.
Eala and Jovic are set to open their campaign on Saturday, not before 3:00 a.m. (Manila time), against the tandem of Jelena Ostapenko and Hailey Baptiste.
Eala enters the tournament fresh off a quarterfinal finish in Dubai, where she bowed to Coco Gauff. Jovic, meanwhile, followed her Dubai Round of 16 showing with another Round of 16 finish at the ATX Open before committing to Indian Wells.
READ: World No. 31 Alex Eala earns first-round bye at Indian Wells
In singles play, both seeded, Eala and Jovic enjoy first-round byes, as they await their respective Round of 64 opponents.
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