Tennis phenom Alex Eala will be kicking off her Asian Games run facing off with Thailand’s Patcharin Cheapchandej on Monday.

As the singles top seed, Eala got a first-round bye, jumping straight into the second round against Cheapchandej, who won against Pakistan’s Mahin Aftab Qureshi.

“Our very own Alex Eala has received a first-round bye as the number one seed in the singles draw, anchoring the top half of the bracket along with other seeds Xiyu Wang of China (#4), Moyuka Uchijima (#6), and Joanna Garland of Chinese Taipei (#8),” the Philippine Tennis Association said previously.

Cheapchandej dominated Qureshi with a 6-1, 6-1 victory, the match lasting just 53 minutes on Court 6 at the Higashiyama Park Tennis Center in Japan.

Eala and the Thai bet have previously met at the ITF W25 Chiang Rai back in 2022, at the Chiang Rai Sports Center in Thailand.

Eala bested Cheapchandej in their Round of 16 clash, 6-3, 6-4, also triumphing against three more opponents and winning the title.

The Eala-Cheapchandej match is set to follow a second-round men's singles match between India's Sumit Nagal and South Korea's Hong Seongchan, which was delayed due to rainy weather.