Eala faces ‘fastest server’ Alycia Parks of US in Round One of AO

AND the battle lines are drawn.

Filipina sensation Alexandra “Alex” Eala will face “fastest server” Alycia Parks of the United States to kick off her highly-anticipated main draw debut in the Australian Open (AO) this weekend at the Melbourne Park.

It will be an acid test for the 20-year-old Filipina according to Thursday’s official draw for the 128-player major, slugging it out against the American ace who currently shares the distinction of the fastest serve by a woman tennis player in history.

Ms. Parks, 25, tied the record of Venus Williams (2007) for the fastest female serve ever with 129 miles per hour in a 6-3, 7-5 defeat to No. 68 Olga Danilović of Serbia in the first round of the 2021 US Open.

Albeit ranked lower now at No. 100 in the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA), that should serve as enough warning for a tall order Ms. Eala, WTA No. 49, needs to hurdle in a bid to reach the second round.

Ms. Parks with a total of three WTA titles also boasts a career-high ranking of No. 40 back in 2023, higher than Ms. Eala’s current place after resetting her previous best of No. 50 last month to become the first Filipina at that stature ever.

Game time is on Sunday, projected at 8:30 a.m. (Manila time) at a still-to-be-determined court in Melbourne Park featuring the Rod Laver Arena, John Cain Arena, Margaret Court Arena and the newly-built Kia Arena.

Mses. Eala and Parks are at the upper half of the bracket, listed as the 22^nd pair in the Round of 64 which means a possible collision against some of the world’s titans.

A win by Ms. Eala, who could be her second in any Slam main draw after the US Open last year, would set her up against either No. 19 seed and WTA No. 19 Karolina Muchova of Czechia or WTA No. 37 Jaqueline Cristian of Romania.

It gets tougher from there with world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus, No. 3 Coco Gauff of USA, No. 7 Jasmine Paolini of Italy and No. 8 Mirra Andreeva of Russia expected to be at the later rounds waiting.

Other top seeds in world No. 2 Iga Swiatek, No. 4 Amanda Anisimova of USA, No. 5 Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan and No. 6 Jessica Pegula of USA are at the bottom half of the stacked AO cast.

Hopes are high for Ms. Eala to finally do well in AO after multiple qualifying round exits since turning pro after following her AO girls doubles crown conquest with Indonesian pal Priska Madelyn Nugroho in 2020.

The AO remains as the only Slam main draw Ms. Eala has not played in after the US Open, Wimbledon and French Open. And it’s now here for the taking with Ms. Eala making sure to be as ready as ever after a solid buildup at the ASB Classic in Auckland and the Kooyong Classic at the same city.

Ms. Eala, as the No. 4 seed, made it to the final four in Auckland to enter inside the Top 50 rankings followed by her mastery against Paris Olympics silver medalist and 2024 Wimbledon semifinalist Donna Vekic, WTA No. 70, of Croatia in the Kooyong Classic, 6-3, 6-4.

“For me to be able to win the junior girls doubles with a good friend of mine was such a treasured memory,” Ms. Eala said on the AO promotional video featuring her and her mentor Rafael Nadal of Spain. “It’s sort of my home slam and I have a lot of good memories there.”

Ms. Eala’s campaign in AO will determine her stint for her first-ever home tournament at the Philippine Women’s Open, where she’s listed as a wildcard in the main draw, slated on Jan. 26 to 31.

She will not make it at home if she gets past the third round or the first week in AO featuring a total of 24 players who will also vie in the historic Manila staging of a WTA Tour for the first time in history. — John Bryan Ulanday