Sourced online from Tennishead by Tracy Cabrera
With her heartbreaking exit in the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) 250 Prudential Hong Kong Open final, Filipina sensation Alexandra ‘Alex’ Eala officially brought her 2026 season to an end, but despite this, she remain the ‘queen of the tennis court’ among her supporters and Filipino fans.
Eala was left emotional with her loss to her lower ranked opponent, American Claire Liu, losing in straight sets, 6-3, 6-0. She was eyeing a second career title following her success in Washington earlier this year, but instead Liu claimed her first.
But her defeat mattered less to the country’s pride as she is set to make her top 15 debut–thanks to her impressive run at the Hong Kong Open. And that feat epitomizes a sensational first full season for the 21-year-old, who has enjoyed many highs (and lows, as well) throughout the gruelling campaign.
Eala picked up plenty of impressive top 10 wins in the 2026 season and Tennishead picked out five of the best, ranking them from fifth to first:
5. Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championship
Alex went head-to-head with the world number 8 Jasmine Paolini of Italy in the round of 32 of the WTA 1000 tournament. She defeated Paolini, 6-1, 7-6.
4. Mubadala DC Open
Here, Eala enjoyed another memorable run and this time her venture ended with a trophy. In one of the most impressive title runs of the entire season, she picked up a huge win over Japanese ace Naomi Osaka in the semifinals.
3. Berlin Tennis Open
Another top 10 victory happened in Berlin in June, with the Filipina rising star stunning future world number one Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan. World number two at the time, Rybakina was beaten 7-5, 6-4 in the round of 16.
2. Washington DC Open
Of course, the Washington DC run was not complete until a truly sensational final victory over the home favourite. The fans were desperate to see American ace Jessica Pegula come out on top, but Eala had other plans against the WTA number three.
She emerged victorious after a thrilling battle with the top seed, coming from behind to win 4-6, 6-4, 6-0.
1. Wimbledon Championship
Eala’s maiden WTA title will live long in her memory, but she will also have extremely fond memories from the All England Club, just as she had made history in Washington. With Polish ace Iga Swiatek aiming to defend her championship titke, she was completely shocked in just the third round by Eala, who won their clash 7-6(11-9), 6-2.
