Alex Eala finally fulfills her dream of playing at the prestigious 23,000-seater Arthur Ashe Stadium in the US Open.

As if written by fate, it will be her good friend and world No. 14 Iva Jovic who will test her mettle in the historic stadium, which has been a silent witness to victories and heartbreaks since its opening in 1997.

The opening serve is set for 7 a.m. (Manila time), with Eala facing Jovic, her doubles partner during the first few months of 2026.

Eala admitted it will take a lot from her if she wants to get the better of Jovic in one of the biggest tournaments on the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) Tour.

“Sisterhood and just having friends on tour has helped me so much. Off the court and on the court, I really admire them for what they’ve been through and what they go through,” Eala said.

“With Iva, she’s an amazing player. She’s young, very talented and very intelligent. Of course, she’s a high-ranked player and very accomplished.”

Eala is coming off a convincing 6-1, 6-4 victory over world No. 46 Oleksandra Oliynykova of Ukraine last week and became the third Filipino tennis player to reach the Round of 32 of the US Open singles after Felicismo Ampon and Raymundo Deyro.

Should she overcome Jovic, Eala will join Ampon as the only Filipino netters to reach the Last 16 of the US Open.

But Jovic has other plans as she looks to make it three straight wins over Eala after defeating the Filipina ace at the French Open last May and the Queen’s Club Championships last June.

After her 6-4, 6-4 victory over Francesca Jones of Great Britain, Jovic said she has nothing but respect for Eala and expects a great match between them in the biggest stadium inside the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York City.

“I think the atmosphere is gonna be amazing, and she’s been playing some great tennis. It’s nice to be playing each other in the third round, deeper into the Slam,” Jovic said.

“We played doubles together at the beginning of the year, so that also helped build the friendship. Now I think we’re very close friends. We’re both very open to the friendship, and we relate to each other a lot.”

Both Eala and Jovic already had a taste of what to expect after playing against each other in the “Stars of the Open” exhibition match last week.

Jovic even defeated Eala, 6-3, in the exhibition as they loosened up before their competitive showdown.

However, both players will be at their A-game as they try to outdo each other for the chance to stay longer in the US Open.

Either Cristina Bucsa of Spain, who eliminated Eala in the second round of last year’s US Open, or world No. 4 Coco Gauff of the United States, whom the Filipina defeated in the Round of 32 of the BNP Paribas Open last March, will be waiting for Eala should she finally beat Jovic.