Who is Talia Gibson? Alex Eala's Round of 16 foe at the Pan Pacific Open - GMA Network

Alex Eala will lean on her familiarity with Talia Gibson as the Filipina tennis star seeks to keep her Asian Swing campaign rolling when they meet in the second round of the Toray Pan Pacific Open.

Eala holds the head-to-head advantage over Gibson, having won both of their previous meetings, giving the Filipina star an edge over the Australian star heading into their clash in Tokyo, Japan.

They first met W40 Palma del Rio in Spain, where Eala pulled off a masterful 6-3, 6-1 win before repeating the feat in their second meeting at the W25 Aldershot in Great Britain which saw the Pinay ace complete a 4-6, 6-4, 6-4 comeback act.

Despite holding the edge on paper, world No. 19 Eala should not underestimate world No. 38 Gibson, who could pose a serious challenge to the Filipina star.

The 22-year-old Gibson has reached the Australian Open’s Round of 64 twice, while also making five main-draw appearances across the other three Grand Slam tournaments.

Recently, she reached the finals but lost to Leylah Fernandez in the WTA500 Singapore Open, the same tournament where Eala bowed out in Round of 16 against lower-ranked Tatiana Prozorova.