Top seed Alex Eala began her Asian Games gold bid with a dominant win. She beat Thailand’s Patcharin Cheapchandej 6-1, 6-0 at the Higashiyama Park Tennis Center’s Indoor Court C on Monday.
The highly anticipated matchup faced early complications as heavy rainfall disrupted outdoor scheduling, forcing a delay of nearly five hours before tournament officials moved the contest inside to Indoor Court C. The wait didn’t bother the world No. 18. Eala broke early in the second set, went up 5-0, and finished with an ace.
Alex Eala for dominates her first match at the 20th Asian Games vs Patcharin Cheapchandej, 6-1, 6-0 👏 https://t.co/24yVhOBK0D
— Dyan Castillejo (@DYANCASTILLEJO) September 28, 2026
The result was expected. Eala, seeded first, had a first-round bye, and she had already beaten Cheapchandej 6-3, 6-4 at a 2022 ITF event. It also helps her recover from a Round of 16 exit at the Singapore Tennis Open.
Her next match will be against Chinese Taipei’s Joanna Garland in the quarterfinals.