Make it three wins over Grand Slam winners for Alex Eala.
The Filipina tennis sensation continued her dream run at the WTA 1000 Miami Open with a stunning 6-2, 7-5 victory over world no. 2 and five-time Grand Slam winner Iga Swiatek.
Playing against one of her idols, Eala played perhaps one of her best games in her young career, displaying great poise and confidence, uncanny precision, and unmatched power. She was particularly superb in the first set, repeatedly breaking Swiatek en route to a dominant 6-2 victory.
Swiatek, who has won the French Open four times and the US Open once, raced out to a 4-2 lead in the second set and looked on her way to forcing a decider. But Eala countered brilliantly and held off set point, 5-4, to set up the stunning finish by breaking Swiatek an eighth time.
“I don’t know what to say, I mean, complete just disbelief right now and I am on cloud nine,” Eala, the first woman from the Philippines to reach the last eight of a WTA 1000 tournament, said in her on-court interview. “It’s forever in my heart.”
Win Pushes Alex Eala to Breakthrough Semis, Top 75 Ranking
Alex Eala’s historic win netted her a semis berth at the WTA 1000 Miami Open and all but assures the 19-year-old will barge into the Top 100 of the world.
Eala has 524 points so far this season in 31 tournaments but is guaranteed 390 points for making the semifinals. That will put her total at 914—or 5 points clear of current world no. 74 Caroline Garcia and 4 points away from American Katie Volynets, the same player the Filipina beat in the Round of 128 to start this scintillating Cinderella story.
“It’s just surreal,” said Eala, who moved to Spain at the age of 13 to join Rafael Nadal’s academy in Mallorca. “I’m trusting my shots and I have a great team to tell me that I can do it.”
Swiatek is the third Grand Slam winner Eala has knocked out after Australian Open champion Madison Keys in the Round of 64 and 2017 French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko in the Round of 32. Eala then received a free pass in the Round of 16 after her opponent, world no. 11 Paula Badosa of Spain, withdrew due to a lower back injury.
From Wildcard to History-Maker: Alex Eala Is Raising the Philippine Flag High
Alex Eala’s exploits at the prestigious WTA 1000 Miami Open is even more impressive and inspiring considering that she’s the only Filipino battling on the professional tennis tour. That means she’s carrying the entire nation on her shoulders in Miami as the only Filipino tennis player in the Top 1000. And it’s something Eala isn’t taking lightly.
“Competing on tour and representing the Philippines means everything to me,” she shared at the WTA’s new Rally the World campaign. “Being a professional tennis player, and the only Filipina on tour, where I come from is such a big part of my identity.”
Now, Alex Eala is two wins away from bringing the Philippines a tennis title—as a wildcard no less.
