Match Details
Fixture: Alexandra Eala vs Sorana Cirstea
Date: Thursday, February 19, 2026
Tournament: Dubai Tennis Championships
Round: Third Round
Category: WTA 1000
Venue: Dubai Duty Free Tennis Stadium, Dubai, United Arab Emirates
Surface: Hard (outdoor)
Prize Money: $4,088,211 (total prize pool)
Live Telecast: USA – Tennis Channel | UK – Sky Sports | Canada – TSN, TVA Sports, DAZN, WTA TV
Alexandra Eala vs Sorana Cirstea preview
Alexandra Eala will take on Sorana Cirstea in the third round of the Dubai Open on Thursday.
Eala has had a hectic season so far. After a semifinal appearance in Auckland, she reached the quarterfinals in Abu Dhabi and Manila. The Filipino also participated in the Australian Open, but lost to Alycia Parks in the first round.
Eala entered Dubai after a first-round exit in Doha. She started her campaign by cruising past Hailey Baptiste and Jasmine Paolini in the initial few rounds. The 20-year-old defeated Paolini in one hour and 40 minutes, 6-1, 7-6(5).
Meanwhile, Sorana Cirstea has made a good start to the season. After a third-round exit in Brisbane, she reached the second round in Melbourne and clinched the title in Cluj-Napoca. The Romanian defeated Emma Raducanu in the final, 6-0, 6-2.
Cirstea started her campaign in Dubai with brilliant wins over Aliaksandra Sasnovich and Linda Noskova in the first two rounds. She defeated Noskova in one hour and 10 minutes, 6-1, 6-4. The 35-year-old has yet to drop a set this week.
Alexandra Eala vs Sorana Cirstea head-to-head
Cirstea leads the head-to-head against Eala 1-0. She defeated the Filipino in the 2024 Madrid Open.
Alexandra Eala vs Sorana Cirstea odds
BetMGM sources all the odds.
Alexandra Eala vs Sorana Cirstea prediction
Eala has been locked in and kept herself busy since the start of the season. The Filipino will be brimming with confidence after taking out the sixth seed in the previous round.
Meanwhile, Cirstea has announced her retirement from tennis at the end of this year. The Romanian showed her class to win in Cluj-Napoca and will be tough to beat in the Dubai Open this year.
Eala will bring her top-spin heavy groundstrokes and dynamic movement to the fore. On the other hand, Cirstea will look to stamp her authority from the baseline and outsmart her opponent on the court.
The Filipino will be up against an experienced opponent, who seems to be at the top of her game this week. She has the pedigree to come out on top, but may go down fighting in the third round.
Pick: Cirstea to win in three sets.
Alexandra Eala vs Sorana Cirstea betting tips
Tip 1: Match to have more than 20 games.
Tip 2: Eala to save more than five break points.
Edited by Aman Mohamed