As Philippine tennis star Alex Eala smashes her way into international success, her political leanings have become the subject of speculation back home, the latest of which includes an image altered with AI depicting her carrying a tote bag expressing support for Vice President Sara Duterte. The picture was altered from an authentic photograph taken during the ATP Washington Open, while analysis found the fabricated version was created using Google’s AI tools.
The image was shared on August 20 in a Facebook group called “Protect Vice President Sara Duterte”, which has over 204,000 members.
It appears to show Eala arriving at a match carrying a tote bag emblazoned with a portrait of the vice president and the words “Sara Duterte 2028”.
Duterte announced in February she will run for president of the archipelago nation of 116 million in 2028 ( archived link).
Screenshot of false post taken on September 4, with AI symbol added by AFP
The image circulated across Facebook as Eala’s rapid rise on the international circuit continued to captivate Filipinos, helping spark a tennis boom in a country where the sport has long been viewed as the preserve of the elite ( archived link).
The 21-year-old recently became the first homegrown Filipino player to win a WTA Tour title after a breakthrough run in August in Washington, where she defeated former world number one Naomi Osaka and world number three Jessica Pegula ( archived link).
Eala’s ATP Washington Open campaign has previously triggered speculation online about her political leanings after she competed in a green outfit, a colour associated with Duterte and her supporters. AFP has debunked a false claim that she had spoken out to reject suggestions that she wore green to support Duterte.
“Well done. Keep it up, Alex. Solid Duterte supporter,” one user commented, while another wrote: “Those who hate Sara will be fuming again.”
Altered with AI
But the image is not authentic. A reverse image search found the original photograph was posted on Instagram by sports journalist Dyan Castillejo on August 3 while covering the ATP Washington Open ( archived link).
The image shows Eala arriving at the ATP Washington Open in a green outfit while carrying Nike’s Alex Eala Sampaguita Tote Bag, part of a collection inspired by the sampaguita, the Philippines’ national flower ( archived link).
The line was created as a tribute to the tennis star’s Filipino roots.
In Castillejo’s original photograph, the tote bag features the collection’s sampaguita-inspired floral design — not the portrait of Duterte shown in the circulating image.
Screenshot comparison of the AI-altered image (left) and Dyan Castillejo’s photo
When asked by Castillejo about her green outfit during the tournament, Eala said she had been given several colour options and chose green, adding that she was glad people liked it ( archived link).
She made no reference to Duterte or her political leanings in the interview.
Screenshot of results from the SynthID detector
Further analysis using Google’s SynthID Detector, a tool designed to identify AI-generated content, found a “high” degree of confidence that the manipulated image was made using the company’s AI tools ( archived link).
AFP has previously debunked other misinformation about Eala.