In 2026 alone, Alex Eala has competed in some 18 tournaments around the globe including Manila. Auckland in New Zealand. Melbourne in Australia. Abu Dhabi and Dubai in UAE. Doha in Qatar. Stuttgart and Berlin and Bad Homburg in Germany. Madrid in Spain. Rome in Italy. Strasbourg and Paris in France. Birmingham and Wimbledon in Great Britain. Miami and Washington DC in the USA. And Toronto in Canada. Across clay (3Wins 4Losses), grass (10W 5L), and hard (22W 9L) courts.
(Aug 3) Alexandra Eala captured her first career WTA Tour title at the 2026 Mubadala DC Open, becoming the first Filipina in history to win a WTA tournament. Eala’s title run included defeats of the tournament’s Top 3 seeds — Jessica Pegula, Elina Svitolina and Naomi Osaka — as well as defending champion Leylah Fernandez. https://www.wtatennis.com/
I had stopped watching men’s tennis ever since Federer and Nadal retired. I was never into women’s tennis as much, except in the time of Sharapova vs Serena, but I always kept an eye out for the Asians, and was thrilled for Mirza, then Osaka, and Raducanu who’s half-Chinese, and certainly for Leylah who is half-Pinay. Now we have Alex making a stunning debut on the global stage, and she’s wholly ours, and she’s so amazingly good, and super simpatika, one can’t help loving her and celebrating (with) her.
No wonder Filipino communities everywhere are filling stadiums whenever wherever she plays, waving our flag, screaming LABAN ALEX! like our lives depended on it, LOL. I think it was in Dubai when I first heard the commentators wondering where all the Pinoys were coming from. One thought they had flown in from Manila just to watch Alex. It took a while before they got it: that there are Filipinos everywhere in the millions — OFWs, migrants, expats. Advantage Eala, sabi nga! — and the WTA and commercial sponsors are having to rethink their traditional preferential treatment for the top 10 because there’s no ignoring this young Pinay and her massive following of Pinoys and Pinays basking in the heat of her passion for, and success in, professional tennis.
The timing is most ironic, kung kailan ang gulo-gulo ng mundo, at pahirap nang pahirap ang buhay dito sa atin. So nakakagitla at nakakasigla, this one bright spot, itong dalagang Pinay na umeeksena sa mundo and acquitting herself quite superbly and doing the Philippines proud, on and off court — like, may maganda ring nangyayari, what a relief! Mabuhay, Alex!