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Alex Eala eyes much-needed me time ahead of Cincinnati Open

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Alex Eala vs Belinda Bencic Alexandra Eala Canadian Open round of 16 Toronto

Alexandra Eala of the Philippines acknowledges the crowd after losing to Belinda Bencic of Switzerland during day eight of the National Bank Open Presented by Rogers at Sobeys Stadium on August 09, 2026 in Toronto, Ontario. Matthew Stockman/Getty Images/AFP

MANILA, Philippines–There’s no rest for the weary. That old adage has never rung truer for Alex Eala at the moment.

After a grueling stretch playing highly competitive tennis for nearly two weeks straight that ended in the Canadian Open round of 16 on Monday, Eala heads to the next stop of her hard court swing in Ohio for the Cincinnati Open.

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Eala will have a short turnaround from Toronto to Cincinnati, where she is making her debut at the WTA 1000 tournament after pulling out last year due to a shoulder injury.

Still, the Filipino sensation will try to squeeze in some me time before returning to action. Luckily for her, being the World No. 20 means she will be seeded in Cincinnati and will get a first-round bye.

“I definitely will take maybe two days off, a day or two. I do have to travel to Cincinnati. I need to get a haircut. I haven’t gotten a haircut in a while. My nails are grown out,” she said with a laugh following a 4-6, 0-6 loss to an in-form Belinda Bencic at Sobeys Stadium – Center court.

“I’ll do a couple things, just to get my mind off tennis. Yeah, reunite maybe with some friends in Cincinnati, and just try to have fun. I’ll be back on court like that, so I got to enjoy what I have. I got to enjoy the time that I have that I’m not on court,” added Eala, who snapped her fingers mid-sentence to emphasize how little time she has before she gets back on the court.

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It’s been a hectic but gratifying North American swing so far for Eala, who won her first WTA Tour title in Washington last week.

Eala had reeled off a career-best seven consecutive wins, including a gutsy win over American Caty McNally in the round of 32 on Saturday despite rolling her right ankle in the second set, before her run came to a screeching halt against Bencic.

“It’s always tough, of course, after a loss. But like I said, I’m looking back at these past two weeks as a really big positive. I think I’ve played really well. I’ve gotten through so many obstacles,” she said. “Of course, right now there’s that initial, just kind of a little tired and down from the match.”

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“But I mean, I’m healthy, which is something I’m super grateful for. It’s something that’s obviously on the top of my priority all the time. So, yeah, I’m counting my blessings. I’m taking the lessons that I’ve had from these two weeks and hopefully implementing them even more in a better way in Cincinnati and New York.”



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Sports

“Just two guys” – Khabib Nurmagomedov names one soccer and one boxing legend as his sporting heroes 

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14 minutes ago

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10 August 2026

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Khabib Nurmagomedov is one of the greatest MMA stars of all-time, and is a role model for many youngsters.

The Russian finished his career undefeated, but his values regarding family, religion and more have added another layer to his legacy.

Many current MMA athletes also look up to Nurmagomedov as a role model, but ‘The Eagle’ also had a couple of sporting heroes while growing up.

The former UFC star was asked about several topics by popular Instagram account Khann-Journey. While there was some mix-up regarding Nurmagomedov’s current situation as he didn’t understand a question, there was no doubting who the retired star looked up to.

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Nurmagomedov claimed that the two sporting heroes for him were Brazilian soccer legend Ronaldo Nazario and boxing legend Muhammad Ali:

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“If you talk about athletes, I can say Brazilian Ronaldo, Muhammad Ali. That’s just two guys.”

Check out Khabib Nurmagomedov‘s message below:

Muhammad Ali needs no introduction. Many consider him as the greatest sportsperson ever, forget boxer, and his beliefs led him to clash with the US Government over the Vietnam War. He was stripped of his titles and was deemed a draft evader. He didn’t fight for four years, which was part of his prime, as he fought the decision by the US by appealing to the Supreme Court.

Ali is a former heavyweight champion and held several records, and also fought in some of the biggest boxing matches in the history of the sport.

Ronaldo, on the other hand, is one of the greatest soccer stars ever. The Brazilian played as a striker and represented several top clubs such as Barcelona, Inter Milan, AC Milan and Real Madrid.

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Ronaldo had incredible football and physicality, but his prime was cut short with several knee injuries. While the 49-year-old won several individual awards, a FIFA World Cup and many league titles, it could have been a lot more had he not been unlucky with injuries.

Former UFC fighter highlights Khabib Nurmagomedov’s humility with inspirational story

Jake Shields once shared an incredible insight about Khabib Nurmagomedov. While Shields’ MMA days are done, he still shares stories and updates from that world, and had one about ‘The Eagle’ in 2024.

Shields highlighted how Nurmagomedov was more than willing to do work that rookies would do, and shared that the Dagestani was on the cusp of UFC glory:

“When I would train with Kahabib in San Jose he would often be the guy mopping the mats [this is usually done by rookies]. This was right before he won the title but I’m pretty sure I also saw him moping in Vegas after he was already a champion. This sets a great example to his team that he’s not above them.”