MANILA – Alex Eala will begin her campaign in the WTA100 Qatar Open against familiar foe Tereza Valentova of Czechia in the first round, eyeing redemption after a straight-set loss in their previous meeting.

The Doha tournament, the Women’s Tennis Association’s first 1000-level event this season, began Monday at the Khalifa International Tennis and Squash Complex. Eala is scheduled to play on Day 2 against a qualifier, which was later determined to be Valentova.

Valentova, the 2024 French Open girls’ singles and doubles champion, advanced to the main draw after topping the qualifying bracket as the No. 1 seed. She defeated Australia’s Arina Rodionova, ranked No. 210, 6-2, 2-6, 7-6(3), and Germany’s Ella Seidel, ranked No. 83.

“Thank you, Abu Dhabi. A time was had. Next stop, Doha,” Eala said Sunday in a social media post, where she shared photos upon arriving in the Qatari capital, including one with close friend Zeynep Sonmez of Turkey.

Eala and Valentova are closely ranked in the WTA standings, with Eala at No. 45 and Valentova at No. 44, making their encounter one of the notable matchups in the 64-player main draw that includes several byes for top seeds.

Game time and court assignment have yet to be announced. Eala, 20, is seeking to bounce back from a 6-1, 6-2 loss to Valentova in the Japan Women’s Open last year.

If Eala advances, she could face 2023 French Open finalist and World No. 19 Karolina Muchova of Russia, the tournament’s No. 14 seed, who opens against Romania’s Jaqueline Cristian, ranked No. 35.

World No. 4 and reigning champion Amanda Anisimova of the United States, the No. 3 seed, is projected to await in the third round of the upper bracket, which also features World No. 2 Iga Swiatek of Poland, No. 8 Jasmine Paolini of Italy, No. 10 Elina Svitolina of Ukraine, and No. 12 Linda Noskova of Czechia.

Eala’s friends Sonmez, ranked No. 49, and Janice Tjen of Indonesia, ranked No. 47, are also in the same bracket, while Australian Open champion and No. 2 seed Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan headlines the bottom half of the draw.

Eala is coming off a strong showing at the WTA500 Abu Dhabi, where she defeated Sonmez to reach the quarterfinals and partnered with Tjen to make the doubles semifinals. The tournament marked her third straight playoff appearance this season following a semifinal run at the WTA250 ASB Classic in Auckland, New Zealand, and a quarterfinal finish at the WTA125 Philippine Women’s Open.

The Qatar Open will be Eala’s first WTA 1000 tournament as a direct entry. She recently played in the Australian Open main draw and won the Kooyong Classic exhibition in Melbourne after her breakout run in the 2025 Miami Open as a wildcard.

During that Miami campaign, Eala scored victories over Grand Slam champions Iga Swiatek, Madison Keys and Jelena Ostapenko, propelling her into the WTA Top 100 and later the Top 50.

According to the WTA live rankings, Eala is currently No. 40 with 1,244 points heading into Doha and stands to climb higher with another deep run.

A second-round finish in Doha is worth at least 65 ranking points and $26,000 in prize money, while a first-round exit would yield 10 points and $18,300.

Eala is set for a busy schedule following Doha, with appearances lined up at the Dubai Tennis Championships from February 15 to 21, the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells from March 4 to 15, and the Miami Open from March 17 to 29.