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Another Olympic gold medalist awaits Alex Eala in Canadian Open quarters bid
On her way to capturing her first career WTA title at the WTA 500 Mubadala Citi DC Open in Washington, Alex Eala rallied from a set down in the opening round to overcome 2024 Paris Olympic singles gold medalist Zheng Qinwen of China.
As Eala seeks to advance at the WTA 1000 Canadian Open, she will need to overcome another Olympic gold medalist in the fourth round of the tournament.
Standing between Eala and a spot in the quarterfinals is 12th seed and former world No. 4 Belinda Bencic of Switzerland.
Bencic won the women’s singles gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021. Among those she defeated on her way to the top prize were four players who would eventually rise to the world’s top six: Jessica Pegula in the first round, Barbora Krejčíková in the third round, Elena Rybakina in the semifinals, and Marketa Vondroušová in the final.
Bencic also came close to winning another Olympic gold in women’s doubles, but she and Viktorija Golubic lost to the Czech Republic pair Krejčíková and Kateřina Siniaková in the final.
In Toronto this week, Bencic made short work of former US Open champion Sloane Stephens of the United States in the second round, 6-3, 6-1. She then survived a grueling three-hour, 26-minute marathon against another American, world No. 2 doubles player Taylor Townsend, 6-7 (5), 7-6 (4), 6-4.
Bencic has had a solid, albeit unspectacular, year thus far. Her best results have been quarterfinal appearances at the WTA 1000 Miami Open and the WTA 500 Charleston Open.
She also reached the fourth round at Wimbledon, the French Open, the WTA 1000 Indian Wells, the WTA 1000 Dubai Tennis Championships, and the WTA 1000 Madrid Open.
The 29-year-old Bencic’s game is reminiscent of the Swiss great and former world No. 1 Martina Hingis. This is hardly surprising, considering Bencic began receiving professional training at the age of five under Melanie Molitor, Hingis’ mother and longtime coach.
That early, top-notch coaching helped Bencic rise to world No. 1 in the junior rankings, winning the girls’ singles titles at both the French Open and Wimbledon.
Bencic took a break from tennis in late 2023 and through 2024 to give birth to her daughter. During her first full year back on tour in 2025, she reached the semifinals of Wimbledon and the fourth round of the Australian Open.
The current Swiss No. 1 is a high-IQ player whose versatility allows her to adjust to whatever game plan her opponent employs. Her aggressive style combines powerful groundstrokes with drop shots and even lobs, keeping her opponents continuously off-balance.
Expect a tactical and cerebral battle between Eala and Bencic, who are both adept at redirecting power shots and constructing points on the fly with a dynamic variety of shots. Both move well around the court, although there could be questions about Eala’s fitness after she rolled her ankle in her previous match against Caty McNally.
One area the Filipina world No. 20 could look to exploit is Bencic’s serve returns, which have been described by experts as among the best in the game. Bencic possesses a powerful first serve, but her second serve has often been shaky. In her first two matches this week, she averaged seven double faults.
If Eala can punish Bencic even on her first serves, it could plant seeds of doubt in the Swiss player’s mind and expose vulnerabilities in her service game.
Eala will need to take chances and go for the lines to put Bencic on the back foot. Engaging in prolonged exchanges could be dangerous given Bencic’s ability to anticipate attacks and use angles to open up the court, forcing opponents into errors.
Quickening the pace and shortening the rallies with deep drives to keep Bencic away from the center of the baseline could swing the match in Eala’s favor.
Whoever comes out on top of this fairly even fourth-round clash will advance to the quarterfinals against the winner of the intriguing matchup between fourth seed Coco Gauff of the United States and the only unseeded player remaining in the draw, 19-year-old Russian and Rafa Nadal Academy product Alina Korneeva.
The post Another Olympic gold medalist awaits Alex Eala in Canadian Open quarters bid appeared first on Tiebreaker Times.
Two weeks after inaugurating its basketball courts, Mighty Sports Center will officially open its volleyball courts at AcroCity in Guiguinto, Bulacan, on Saturday, October 10, in what promises to be another festive affair.
Rising star Jolina Dela Cruz and veterans Jovelyn Gonzaga and Rachell Anne Daquiz, along with the rest of the ZUS Coffee Thunderbelles, will join the celebration dubbed “SET.SPIKE.PLAY.”
AcroCity and Czark Mak chairman Caesar Wongchuking, a longtime sports patron, said that aside from the exhibition match between ZUS Coffee and the Makata Selection of Bulacan at 4 p.m., the event will also feature a meet-and-greet session where fans can interact with their PVL idols.
“Just like the inauguration of the basketball courts, fans can interact with these professional volleyball players,” said Wongchuking. “It’s our own little way to giving back to communities.”
Wongchuking added that proceeds from the event will go to Tahanang Mapagpala of Immaculada Concepcion Foundation, Inc. He also thanked ZUS Coffee owner Frank Lao for allowing his players to take part in the celebration.
Also expected to grace the event are Bulacan Vice Governor Alex Castro and Malolos City Mayor Christian Natividad.
The volleyball courts are part of the Mighty Sports Center at AcroCity, a development envisioned as a “Live, Work, Play” destination in Guiguinto.
Aside from its basketball and volleyball courts and modern fitness center, AcroCity is also home to Acro Residences Hotel, restaurants such as Cafe de Margaux and Mt. Fuji, and event venues including Ang Hardin and NDW Plaza, which is named after the Wongchuking family matriarch, Nelia D. Wongchuking.
The post ZUS Coffee to grace Mighty Sports Center volleyball court launch appeared first on Tiebreaker Times.
The Golden Eaglets of Nigeria will begin their qualifying campaign for the U17 AFCON against Cote d’Ivoire next week Wednesday.
The match schedule is out!
Ouagadougou will host the WAFU B U-17 AFCON Qualifying Tournament Burkina Faso 2026 from 10 to 23 October 2026.
West Africa’s best U-17 teams will battle for qualification to the U-17 AFCON.
Check out the official match schedule!
#WAFUB #U17AFCON #BurkinaFaso2026 #RoadToAFCON #YouthFootball #AfricanFootball
#UFOAB #WAFUB #U17AFCON #BurkinaFaso2026 #RoadToAFCON #YouthFootball
— CAF ZONE OUEST B (@CafZoneOuestB) October 7, 2026
Their other Group B match will be against Niger three days later.
The WAFU B U17 AFCON qualifying tournament will kick off Saturday, when hosts Burkina Faso take on Benin and Ghana square up against Togo.
Burkina Faso head Group A, whose overall winners will face runners-up in Group B for a place in the championship game.
The post Golden Eaglets begin U17 AFCON qualifiers vs Cote d’Ivoire first appeared on Score Nigeria.
Alex Eala and Shaira Rivera hurdled their first test as a doubles pair, defeating Hong Kong’s Kallista Liu and Lai Ching Laam, 6-1, 6-3, in the opening round of the women’s doubles tournament at the 20th Asian Games Aichi-Nagoya 2026 on Tuesday.
With the outdoor courts washed out by continuous rain, Eala and Rivera had their original schedule pushed back to the evening. The long delay, however, did little to disrupt their rhythm as they quickly took control of the match.
Eala, ranked No. 127 in the world in doubles, and Rivera, a standout at NCAA Division II school University of West Alabama, needed little time to jell as a pair.
(C) POC Media
After their opponents held serve in the opening game, the Filipinas rattled off six straight games to take the first set in just 33 minutes.
The second set lasted a bit longer, but Eala and Rivera remained in control for most of the way to seal the victory at the Higashiyama Park Tennis Center.
The road ahead, however, will be considerably tougher in the second round. Eala and Rivera will face doubles specialists and third seeds Jiang Xinyu and Yang Zhaoxuan of China.
The 27-year-old Jiang is ranked No. 22 in the world in doubles and recently reached the Wimbledon semifinals. Then Yang, 31, has a career-high doubles ranking of No. 9 and has also reached the semifinals of the French Open.
Both Filipinas are also into the next round in their other competitions — Rivera with partner Francis Alcantara in mixed doubles, and Eala in the women’s singles.
The post Alex Eala, Shaira Rivera roll into Asian Games doubles second round appeared first on Tiebreaker Times.
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