Alex Eala finishes dream run in Miami Open 2025, bows out to America's Jessica Pegula
The Philippines is proud of you, Alex Eala!
The 19-year-old tennis phenom fell short at the semifinals of the 2025 Miami Open, bowing out to World No. 4, America’s Jessica Pegula, 7-6 (3), 5-7, 6-3.
The tournament was held on March 27 (March 28, Philippine time) at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida.
In a post-match interview on the court, Pegula described Eala as "a really good tennis player."
"[She] goes for her shots, takes the ball early, rips, being a lefty is always tricky, competes really well," she added. "She's beaten a lot of top players this week, I don't really think she needs me to tell her that she's a great player."
With her victory, Pegula is moving on to the final round, where she will compete against World No. 1, Belarus' Aryna Sabalenka.
Eala made history at the games this year.
She defeated former French Open champion and World No. 25 Jelena Ostapenko on March 22.
Last March 24, she defeated Australian Open champion, America's Madison Keys, making her the first Filipino to beat a Top 10 opponent since the ranking system came into being 50 years ago.
She won against World No. 2 Iga Swiatek on March 27, which made her advance to the semis.
She made history by becoming the first Filipino to reach the final four of a Women's Tennis Association 1000 event and making it to the top 100 of WTA rankings.
When Eala was 13, her talent was evident that her family made the difficult decision to send her to Spain to Rafa Nadal's academy in Mallorca.
Access to the academy's quality coaching and facilities has helped her grow into the 2022 US Open girls' singles champion and a real contender on the WTA Tour.
But Eala knows that her road to the big stage began earlier than that move.
"The academy has been my home for the past seven years," she said. "Of course, my family should take credit for the foundation that they laid out before they sent me there."
"But of course, the academy was able to build on that foundation in such a way that I'm able to be where I am now. And I think the combination of everything that I've been through since I started tennis is what has led to this moment and what has led to me having all these opportunities," she added. (with reports from AFP)
