Alexandra “Alex” Eala just blasted her way into another milestone — soaring to a career-high World No. 55 in the latest Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) live rankings released Thursday.
The 20-year-old Filipina tennis ace and Globe Ambassador achieved the feat after a commanding first-round victory at the inaugural São Paulo Open WTA 250 in Brazil, blanking France’s Yasmine Mansouri, 6-0, 6-2, on Tuesday night (Wednesday morning in Manila).
It marked a new personal best, surpassing her previous high of No. 56 set in June, and further cementing her status as one of the fastest-rising young stars on the global tour.
Eala carried her momentum into the second round, where she ousted Argentina’s Julia Riera, 6-1, 6-4, on Wednesday night (Thursday morning in Manila) to march into the quarterfinals. She is set to face Indonesia’s Janice Tjen in an all-Southeast Asian showdown on Friday.
The Philippine tennis pride was nearly flawless in the opening set against Riera, breaking the World No. 188 with ease for a 6-1 start. Although Riera briefly rallied in the second set, Eala regrouped and closed out the match in just an hour and 18 minutes.
While Riera fired more aces (6-0) and converted 44% of her break points (4 of 9), Eala dominated the crucial numbers: first-serve percentage (70% to 60%), first-serve points won (84% to 57%), and return points won (52% to 28%). She also led in total service points won, 72% to 48%.
The victory extended Eala’s winning streak to seven matches, including her historic Guadalajara 125 Open title last week — making her the first Filipina to capture a WTA crown. That triumph propelled her to World No. 61 before this latest leap to No. 55, marking another breakthrough in her remarkable young career.
