Sustaining her red-hot streak will be the order of business when Alex Eala battles world No. 70 Caty McNally of the United States in the Round of 32 of the Canadian Open on Saturday morning (Manila time) at the Sobeys Stadium in Toronto.

The 21-year-old Filipina will be marching to her 8:30 a.m. battle oozing with momentum after winning her last six matches, including five in the Washington Open where she slayed world No. 3 Jessica Pegula of the United States in the women’s singles final that was witness and celebrated by a large group of Filipino supporters.

Adding extra fire for Eala was the outcome of her women’s doubles event campaign together with seven-time Grand Slam champion Venus Williams on Friday.

In their first partnership since reaching the quarterfinals of the Bad Homburg Open in Germany last June, Eala and Williams fell prey to the tandem of Miyu Kato of Japan and Liudmila Samsonova of Russia, 4-6, 3-6, for a Round of 32 exit.

Although their match against the Japanese and the Russian didn’t last for more than 76 minutes, it could still be a blessing in disguise as Eala will have more time to focus on her singles campaign, where she is chasing her first ever Women’s Tennis Association 1000 crown — a jewel that is just one rung below the Grand Slam.

Eala said she cherished their time together and absorbed all the lessons and wisdom imparted to her by the 46-year-old Williams, who already won three Wimbledon Championship titles and two US Open crowns when Eala was born on 23 May 2005 in Quezon City.

“Every opportunity I get to share the court with her is super cherished. She’s got a great mentality, and there’s so much I can learn from her,” said Eala, who displayed much improved serves, more powerful returns and tremendous mental toughness in beating world No. 71 Alycia Parks of the United States, 6-1, 4-6, 6-2, in the opening round last Thursday.

“I think I had to take it point by point, of course. I think Alycia played really well in the second, and there are definitely things I could have done a little better,” Eala said.

“So, I tried to improve on that in the third. I tried to come out hot and just take all the opportunities that I could because, you know, she doesn’t really give you much. But yeah, that’s what I was thinking.”

With the 10,000-seat Center Court again expected to be sold out, Eala said having a huge Filipino crowd behind her helps her manage her nerves even better. In fact, against Parks, Filipino fans not just from Toronto but from other cities of North America showed up to cheer for her, turning the venue into a huge Filipino fiesta.

“Of course, out there, I felt very at home. With all the people supporting me, and, you know, I hope that they enjoyed the tennis,” Eala said, noting that the tournament even sells the Filipino dish chicken adobo at its concession stands.

“I hope that they enjoyed the grounds, and, you know, they can see, you know, all of these great matches and experience it, and, you know, want to come back.”

While Eala holds the advantage on paper, McNally should not be underestimated after she pulled off a 7-6, 6-1 upset over world No. 6 Linda Noskova of the Czech Republic last Thursday.

“Come watch us. I’m so excited to play with her. It’s gonna be a great time,” the 24-year-old McNally, whose highest ranking is at No. 50 with two WTA 125 crowns, said.

A victory over McNally could send Eala to the Round of 16 against world No. 14 Belinda Bencic of Switzerland on top of a cash prize worth $81,000 — or roughly P5 million — along with 120 ranking points that will further boost her WTA ranking.