Alex Eala has yet to formally return to the iconic Billie Jean King Tennis Center in New York City, but her name is already on the entry list of the US Open from 30 August to 13 September.

The 21-year-old Filipina is among the Southeast Asian players who are expected to strut their stuff in the prestigious Grand Slam event together with world No. 38 Janice Tjen of Indonesia, and world No. 82 Lanlana Tararudee and world No. 100 Mananchaya Sawangkaew of Thailand.

She is expected to wage war overflowing with confidence after coming off a superb performance at the Wimbledon Championships in London, where she became the first Filipina to reach the Round of 16.

The other SEA netters also made waves at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club with Sawangkaew advancing to the Last 32 after earning her spot through the qualifying draw.

Meanwhile, Tararudee and Tjen both reached the second round, underscoring the growing potential of Southeast Asian players on one of tennis’ biggest stages.

Also on the entry list are defending champion and world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka, world No. 2 Elena Rybakina, world No. 3 Jessica Pegula, world No. 4 Coco Gauff and world No. 17 Iva Jovic.

Before returning to the Big Apple, Eala will begin her North American hardcourt campaign at the Washington Open on 27 July at the William H.G. FitzGerald Tennis Center.

She said she and her team will map out their approach for the tournaments leading up to the US Open.

“My focus right now is to prep for the US Open. Some good tournaments,” said Eala, who feels refreshed and rejuvenated following a brief visit in Manila last week.

“I’m sure next week we will have a good meeting, and maybe set some more goals after that.”

The US Open has been one of the defining tournaments of Eala’s career.

In 2022, she defeated Lucie Havlickova of the Czech Republic to capture the girls’ singles title, becoming the first Filipino to win a Junior Grand Slam crown.

Three years later, she claimed her first Grand Slam main draw victory after defeating world No. 30 Clara Tauson of Denmark.

But before returning to New York City, Eala will make several stops in North America to fine-tune her game.

After the Washington Open, she will compete in the Canadian Open, a Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) 1000 tournament, in Toronto from 1 to 13 August.

She will then head to the Cincinnati Open, another WTA 1000 event, from 13 to 23 August.

If she continues to post strong results, Eala has a good chance of not only securing a spot in the US Open main draw but also earning a seed if she stays inside the Top 32 of the WTA rankings.

She enjoyed that advantage at Wimbledon, where she was seeded No. 29, allowing her to open her campaign against a qualifier before potentially facing higher-ranked opponents in the later rounds.