Alex Eala reaches career-high no. 29 in WTA rankings
Alex Eala has cracked the Top 30!
The 20-year-old Filipina is now the world's no. 29 in the WTA rankings, rising two spots from her previous no. 32 placement.
This new ranking comes after her Indian Wells Open run, where she beat out Dayana Yastremska, and her round of 32 opponent, Coco Gauff, retired from their match. Eala ended her run after falling to world no. 14 Linda Noskova.
Before the Indian Wells, she reached the quarterfinals of the Dubai and Abu Dhabi Open and exited in the round of 64 of the Qatar Open.
The Pinay tennis phenom is next set to compete in the Miami Open as the 31st seed. She'll first face off against the winner between Germany's Laura Siegemund, no. 53, and Croatia's Petra Marcinko, no. 76.
Eala may see a rematch with Swiatek, no. 3, in the round of 32 if the Filipina and Polish players advance.
It can be recalled that Eala made history during the Miami Open in 2025 after she beat out Australian Open champion Madison Keys and then-world no. 2 Iga Swiatek. At the time, she was ranked no. 140.
"Miami last year was a beautiful time for me, and it was the start of all this, but since then I've achieved a lot as well," Eala said in an interview on the Indian Wells website. Since then, she debuted at Wimbledon, where she was defeated by reigning champion Barbora Krejcikova in the first round, and won her first WTA title in the Guadalajara 125 Open.
"I've grown a lot and I've had so many good matches, so many tough losses, so much experience since then. And that's helped me build confidence, self-esteem, and I know that I belong here."
"So it doesn't matter if I win the tournament in Miami or if I lose in the first round. I know I'm here and I'm here to stay."
