DC Open: Alex Eala continues ascension, beats another defending champion

WASHINGTON — In a star-laden tennis setting, Mubadala DC Open tournament chair Mark Ein said the overwhelming majority of ticket requests have asked about when one player is competing — and it’s someone who is still young enough to be in college.

Alex Eala.

“Over the last month, the ticketing team says at least 80%, if not more, of the requests in this tournament are about, when is Alex Eala playing?” Ein said. “Honestly, I think it’s more, and they just didn’t want to say it was more.”

Eala, 21, added to her impressive list of upset wins with a straight-set victory over No. 7-seed defending DC Open champion Leylah Fernandez on Wednesday, continuing her breakout year.

Eala rallied from down 5-1 in the second set to force a tiebreak, which she won handily. On Friday, she’ll face the winner of No. 2-seed Elina Svitolina and Veronika Kudermetova, with a chance to advance to a WTA 500-level tournament semifinal for the second time after reaching that stage at the Berlin Open in June.

“She’s a tough player. She’s playing with a lot of confidence. She’s trusting herself,” Fernandez said. “She’s always in the match, whether she’s down or whether she’s up.”

Eala’s breakthrough began with her defeating another defending champion — but on a much larger stage.

Eala stunned defending champion Iga Swiatek at Wimbledon in straight sets on Centre Court in July. While she lost on the same iconic court in the fourth round to 2024 Wimbledon finalist Jasmine Paolini, the victory over the then-World No. 3 Swiatek pushed Eala into the national spotlight.

“The whole Wimbledon run for me, especially those two matches on Centre [Court], were so crazy,” Eala said. “Every time on Wimbledon Centre Court, it’s like I’m living out my dream. I’m living out my dream every day, but that was a little more special.”

The now-World No. 28 has already made history among Filipino players.

At the Australian Open girls’ singles competition in 2020, Eala became the first Filipino to win a Grand Slam title in the junior category. With her Wimbledon run, she became the first Filipino in the Open era to reach the fourth round of a Grand Slam. And Eala is the first Filipino to enter the WTA top-100 rankings.

That unprecedented success has landed Eala a global following. She was especially taken aback by her fan support this year at the Australian Open, the Middle East tennis swing and when returning home from Wimbledon, she said.

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“It seems to surprise me every time. Sometimes I forget the impact that I hold, and sometimes I don’t expect the number of people who come and support,” Eala said.

Eala’s given those dedicated fans plenty to cheer for. That includes when she won the Birmingham Open this year and the Guadalajara Open in 2025. But both of those are 125-level events, equivalent to a mid-tier tournament. The next step in Eala’s ascension is coming out victorious in a high-level tournament.

Winning the DC Open, a 500-level tournament, would achieve exactly that.

Have a news tip? Contact Jake Kauderer at jkauderer@baltsun.com and x.com/jakekauderer.