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Alexandra Eala
Filipino tennis player (born 2005) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Alexandra Maniego Eala[a] (born May 23, 2005) is a Filipino professional tennis player. She reached a career-high WTA singles ranking of world No. 50 on 3 November 2025, making her the highest-ranked Filipino in tour history. She is also the first Filipino to break into the top 50, defeat multiple top-5 players and major champions, and reach a tour-level final in the Open Era.
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Eala reached an ITF junior ranking of No. 2 on 6 October 2020 and became the first Filipino to win a junior Grand Slam title by claiming the girls' singles crown at the 2022 US Open.
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Early and personal life
Eala was born on May 23, 2005, in Quezon City, Philippines.[1] Her mother, Rosemarie "Rizza" Maniego-Eala, was a 1985 Southeast Asian Games bronze medalist in the 100-meter backstroke and later served as the chief financial officer of Globe Telecom until 2024.[2] Eala is a niece of former Philippine Sports Commission chairperson and Philippine Basketball Association commissioner Noli Eala.[3][4] Her brother, Michael "Miko" Eala, played tennis for the Pennsylvania State University Nittany Lions from 2020 to 2024.[5][6]
Eala attended the Immaculate Conception Academy in San Juan and Colegio San Agustin in Makati, before transferring to the Rafa Nadal Academy in Manacor, Spain. She graduated from the academy in 2023.[7][8][9]
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Career
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2018–2022: Juniors
At age 12, Eala won the 2018 Les Petits As tournament.[10] In October, she claimed her first under-18 title at the ITF Trofeo David Ferrer tournament in Alicante, Spain, winning both singles and doubles (with Joelle Lilly Sophie Steur).[11]
Eala made her junior major debut at the 2019 US Open, where she reached the second round.[12] At the 2020 Australian Open, she reached the third round in singles[13] and won the girls' doubles title with Priska Madelyn Nugroho.[14] She reached the semifinals of the 2020 French Open, boosting her ITF junior ranking to world No. 2.[15]
In 2021, Eala captured her second junior major doubles title at the French Open, teaming up with Oksana Selekhmeteva.[16] The following July, she dominated the 61st Trofeo Bonfiglio in Milan, clinching both the singles and doubles crowns alongside Madison Sieg.[17] At Wimbledon, Eala advanced to the second round,[18] and later that year, she reached the quarterfinals of the US Open.[19] Her breakthrough came in 2022, when she claimed her first junior Grand Slam singles title.[20]
2020–2024: Professional debut
Eala entered the ITF circuit in March 2020 at the W15 Monastir event in Tunisia, where she won her first ITF match.[21] The following year she captured the W15 Manacor title in Spain as the youngest and lowest-seeded reserve, earning her first entry into the WTA rankings.[22][23]
Her early progress included a debut at the Miami Open qualifiers and a second-round run at the Romanian Open, along with a doubles final appearance at W25 Platja d’Aro with Selekhmeteva.[24][25]
Her rise continued in 2022, highlighted by her first ITF singles crown at W25 Chiang Rai and a maiden WTA main draw appearance at the Miami Open.[22]
In 2023 she contested her first Grand Slam qualifying draw at the Australian Open and went on to reach several WTA main draws, including Miami, Madrid, Hua Hin, Osaka, Guangzhou, and Monastir.[22] That season she broke into the Top 200, climbing to a career-high No.191 in September.[26]
The 2024 season brought further progress. Eala advanced to the second round of the Madrid Open, competed in multiple WTA 500 and 1000 events—including Abu Dhabi, Guadalajara, Wuhan, Guangzhou, and Jiujiang—and secured her fourth ITF crown at W100 Vitoria-Gasteiz.[27] She also entered qualifying at all four majors and in July reached a career-high ranking of No.143.[22][27]
2025: Miami semifinals, WTA 125 title, top 50
Eala began 2025 by reaching the semifinals of the WTA 125 Canberra International. Ranked No. 140, Eala was awarded a wildcard for the Miami Open, where she defeated Jeļena Ostapenko, Madison Keys, and Iga Świątek before losing to Jessica Pegula in the semifinals.[28] Eala became the first Filipino to reach a WTA 1000 semifinal, defeat a major champion at tour level, and beat three major champions in straight sets as a wildcard at a single event.[29] On March 31, 2025, she entered the WTA's top 100, ranking at No. 75.[30]
On clay, she exited in the second round of the WTA 125 Oeiras Open, then fell in the same round at the Madrid Open. While Eala exited in the first round of the Italian Open, she reached the doubles quarterfinals with Coco Gauff. Eala debuted at the French Open with a first-round singles loss but reached the second round in doubles.[22][25]
On grass, Eala reached the quarterfinals of the WTA 125 Ilkley Open and made her first WTA Tour final at Eastbourne, where she lost to Maya Joint.[31] Her Wimbledon debut ended with first-round exits in both singles and doubles.[22][25]
During the North American hard court swing, Eala lost in the first round of the Canadian Open.[32] At the US Open, she defeated Clara Tauson to become the first Filipino to win a Grand Slam main draw match,[33] before falling to Cristina Bucșa in the second round.[34]
Seeded second, Eala won her first WTA Challenger title at the Guadalajara 125 Open, defeating Panna Udvardy in the final and becoming the first Filipino to win a WTA 125 singles title.[35] She later reached the quarterfinals of the Sao Paolo Open, where she lost to Janice Tjen.[36]
In Asia, Eala reached the semifinals of the WTA 125 Jingshan Open, where she lost to eventual champion Lulu Sun.[37] She followed with a quarterfinal run at the WTA 125 Suzhou Open, falling to Viktorija Golubic.[38] She exited in Wuhan qualifying and suffered first-round losses in Osaka and Guangzhou.[22] In doubles, she reached the Guangzhou semifinals with Lyudmyla Kichenok and advanced to the second round in Hong Kong.[25]
Eala finished the season ranked No. 50 in the world, the highest singles ranking ever achieved by a player from the Philippines.[39]
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National team
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Eala has played for the Philippines in international events. She competed at the 2021 SEA Games (postponed to 2022), winning bronze medals in the women's singles, women's team, and mixed doubles.[40] At the 2022 Asian Games (postponed to 2023), Eala earned bronze medals in the women's singles and mixed doubles.[41]
In 2024, Eala led Team Philippines to a dominant 5–0 sweep in the Billie Jean King Cup Asia/Oceania Group II, going undefeated in singles and doubles, with teammates Marian Capadocia, Khim Iglupas and Shaira Hope Rivera contributing to the squad's successful promotion to Group I.[42]
Sponsorships and endorsements
Eala signed her first endorsement deal at eight years old, becoming an ambassador for Filipino telecommunications company Globe.[43] Starting from her junior career, she has been sponsored by French tennis brand Babolat.[44][45] In 2019, she signed a sponsorship deal to represent Nike.[46] In 2022, Eala was announced as an endorser for Filipino bank BPI.[47][48] She has appeared on fashion spreads and magazine covers, including those of the November 2022 issue of Vogue Philippines and the January 2025 issue of Tatler Philippines.[49][50]
In July 2025, for her Wimbledon debut, Nike gifted Eala with a hair tie designed in the form of a sampaguita blossom, the national flower of the Philippines.[51][52] During the same month, Eala was announced as a brand ambassador for Filipino juice brand Locally.[53] In August, Nike released an Eala-inspired limited edition shirt designed by Filipino artist Georgina Camus, featuring the "national flower of the Philippines overlaid on the All England Lawn Tennis Club's grass courts".[54][55]
Accolades
Awarded by the Philippine Sportswriters Association, Eala has been recognized as a seven-time honoree (2019–2024, 2026) for her "outstanding" achievements in tennis at the PSA Annual Awards.[56] In 2021, Tatler Asia included Eala in its annual list of Asia's most influential people.[57] In April 2025, she was awarded the Premios Tanglaw trophy by the Philippine embassy in Madrid for her contributions to strengthening Philippines–Spain relations.[58]
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Performance timeline
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| W | F | SF | QF | #R | RR | Q# | P# | DNQ | A | Z# | PO | G | S | B | NMS | NTI | P | NH |
(W) winner; (F) finalist; (SF) semifinalist; (QF) quarterfinalist; (#R) rounds 4, 3, 2, 1; (RR) round-robin stage; (Q#) qualification round; (P#) preliminary round; (DNQ) did not qualify; (A) absent; (Z#) Davis/Fed Cup Zonal Group (with number indication) or (PO) play-off; (G) gold, (S) silver or (B) bronze Olympic/Paralympic medal; (NMS) not a Masters tournament; (NTI) not a Tier I tournament; (P) postponed; (NH) not held; (SR) strike rate (events won / competed); (W–L) win–loss record.
To avoid confusion and double counting, these charts are updated at the conclusion of a tournament or when the player's participation has ended.
Only main-draw results in WTA Tour, Grand Slam tournaments, Fed Cup/Billie Jean King Cup and Olympic Games are included in win–loss records.[59]
Singles
Current through the 2025 US Open.
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WTA Tour finals
Singles: 1 (runner-up)
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WTA Challenger finals
Singles: 1 (title)
ITF Circuit finals
Singles: 8 (5 titles, 3 runner-ups)
Doubles: 4 (3 titles, 1 runner-up)
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Junior Grand Slam finals
Singles: 1 (title)
Doubles: 2 (2 titles)
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ITF Junior finals
Singles: 9 (4 titles, 5 runner-ups)
Doubles: 5 (3 titles, 2 runner-ups)
Wins against top 10 players
- Eala holds a 2–2 career record against players ranked in the WTA top 10 at the time of play.[60]
- *As of 24 April 2025[update]
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Notes
- English: /iːˈɑːlɑː, eɪ-, -lə/; Filipino pronunciation: [ɛˈjalɐ]
References
External links
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