Philippines' Alexandra Eala reacts as she plays against Czech Republic's Barbora Krejcikova during their women's singles first round tennis match on the second day of the 2025 Wimbledon Championships at The All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in Wimbledon, southwest London, on July 1, 2025. Glyn Kirk, AFP/File
Filipina tennis star Alex Eala played a doubles match under unusual circumstances on Saturday at the 2025 MGM Macau Tennis Masters.
Eala teamed up with China's Jerry Shang in the mixed doubles, where they were supposed to play against a tandem that included world No. 9 Mirra Andreeva.
The Russian star was forced to withdraw due to illness, however, and Eala wound up playing in a lighthearted doubles match against two male opponents. She and Yang took on the pair of Yibing Wu and Alejandro Davidovich Fokina.
The match proved to be closely contested throughout. In the opening set, both teams were level at 1-all and 3-all before Wu and Fokina edged ahead late to take the set, 7–5.
Set two followed a similar pattern, with the score tied at 1-all, 3-all, and later 5-all, eventually reaching 6-all.
Wu and Davidovich Fokina sealed the match in straight sets after winning the tiebreak, 7–6.
When asked post-match whether the mixed doubles format could be implemented in official tour competitions, Eala responded with a laugh.
"I think maybe it was more fun for me than it was for Jerry," she said.
Eala is scheduled to return to the court in singles action on Saturday, December 28, where she is set to face Andreeva, pending her recovery.
The Macau Tennis Masters marks Eala's return to action after her historic campaign in the 2025 Southeast Asian Games, where she won a gold medal in the women's singles.