Nineteen-year-old Alexandra Eala is the talk of the tennis world. She made history for the Philippines by winning the 2022 US Open junior title. By 2023, she had turned pro and climbed the ranks, breaking into the top 200 in the WTA rankings. And now in 2025, she has exploded onto the scene. Eala reached the semifinals at the Canberra International before stunning everyone at Miami. As a wild card ranked No. 140, she shocked world No. 5 Madison Keys in the R32. Then, in a thrilling quarterfinal, she toppled world No. 2 Iga Swiatek, 6-2, 7-5, becoming the first Filipina to reach a WTA 1000 semifinal. What’s it been like for the young starlet ever since?
Eala was competing at the Oeiras Ladies Open in Portugal, where she started strong, defeating Anouk Koevermans in the round of 32 on April 14. But her hot streak ended in the last 16. She lost to Hungary’s Panna Udvardy, ranked 137th, 7-6 (7-4), 6-4. The match lasted a grueling hour and 50 minutes on clay. It’s a setback for the 19-year-old, who entered the tournament at a career-high No. 73 after her Miami heroics.
After the match, when she was asked if life on tour had changed since Miami, Eala came up with a humble response. “A lot has changed, technically, but at the same time, not much has changed. It’s hard to explain. I’ve had the same work ethic since I was young, so nothing has changed in terms of how I go about my day has really changed,” she said. But just how big was her run at the Miami Open?
Well, it was just wild—she made history left and right! By beating Swiatek, she became the lowest-ranked woman ever to take down a Top 2 player in Miami. Reaching the semifinal, she matched the best wild card result as well, like Justine Henin in 2010 and Victoria Azarenka in 2018. Eala also became the first wild card to defeat three Grand Slam champs in straight sets at one WTA event.
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