August 29, 2025 | 12:00am
Pinay ace falls in US Open RD 2
MANILA, Philippines — Alex Eala’s quest for glory is just not ending anytime quickly.
Eala noticed her Grand Slam season come to an abrupt finish within the US Open however not with out invaluable feats and classes she hopes to hold over to her subsequent campaigns.
The US Open, the place she bowed within the second spherical after a historic debut, served as the ultimate tennis main this 12 months however positively not the tip of the street for the Filipina satisfaction, who will look to proceed scaling the world rankings by the remaining WTA occasions in 2025.
Eala, world No. 75, is already listed in the primary draw of the Sao Paulo Open in Brazil slated Sept. 8 to 14 – a contemporary begin for the Pinay phenom following a 6-4, 6-3 loss to No. 95 Cristina Bucsa of Spain in Spherical 2 of the US Open in Queens, New York.
She was on an all-time excessive and using the momentum of a breakthrough 6-3, 2-6, 7-6 (13-11) win over world No. 15 Clara Tauson of Denmark however then fumbled and fell versus Bucsa.
Eala loved early leads on each units, 3-2 and 2-1, however couldn’t maintain the tempo and blew an opportunity at repeating a 2-6, 6-3, 7-6 (10-8) win over the 27-year-old Spanish within the W25 Grenoble in France again in 2021.
However all’s not misplaced for Eala, who has threaded uncharted territory for Philippine tennis with appearances in all 4 Slams and deep playoff runs in WTA tourneys.
Save for an early exit within the Australian Open qualifying draw, Eala made it to the primary attracts of the French Open, Wimbledon and US Open, the place she turned the primary Filipina ever to attain a victory price $154,000 or roughly P8.7 million in money prize.
Eala, this 12 months, additionally soared as the primary Pinay to succeed in three professional semifinals within the Canberra Worldwide, Miami Open and Eastbourne Open, the place she turned the primary finalist from the Philippines as effectively.
Thus far, the Miami Open run was her biggest run – with a whopping purse of $332,160 (round P19 million) – marked by titanic wins towards three Prime-25 gamers and former Grand Slam champions in Madison Keys of the US, Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia and world No. 2 Iga Swiatek of Poland.
That marketing campaign for the books propelled her from No. 140 to contained in the Prime 100 of the Girls’s Tennis Affiliation that additionally serves as her direct ticket entry to all WTA 1000 tournaments and Grand Slam primary attracts.
A graduate of the Rafael Nadal Academy in Spain in 2023, Eala created fairly a stir on her upset of Tauson – the spotlight of her Grand Slam debut that might be the spring board to higher issues sooner or later.
