Alex Eala has been on a steady rise over the last couple of years, but her 2025 season proved to be stellar in terms of making strides as she catapulted herself to international stardom with her sustained success.
After beginning the year among the 100s in the WTA rankings, Eala finally broke through and reached no. 50. She will head into the new season ranked 53rd in the world.
With more than a handful of milestones, Eala enters 2026 with a lot of expectation and promise.
But before Alex gets going with her first foray into the main draw of the Australian Open, we retrace the biggest moments of the 2025 season.
March 2025: Momentous in Miami
For most people, Eala’s breakthrough started with her unreal run at the Miami Open, where she was given a Wild Card entry as world no. 140.
Entering the tournament as a relative unknown, Eala quickly established herself as one of the next big things in tennis when she made a Cinderella run all the way to the semifinals.
She first nabbed a win over American Katie Volynets, 6-3, 7-6(3), a victory that set off a series of resounding upsets that pushed Eala to the consciousness of every tennis fan in the world.
Not only did she follow up her win over Volynets with a 7-6(2), 7-5, win over Jelena Ostapenko, but she had more surprises in store.
In her first two matches against Top 5 players, Eala beat Madison Keys (WTA no. 5) and Iga Swiatek (WTA no. 2) with convincing two set wins.
She then gave eventual runner-up Jessica Pegula a run for her money before succumbing in three sets, 7-6(3), 5-7, 6-3.
The dream run in Miami opened up a plethora of opportunities for Eala, gaining 390 points in the WTA 1000 tournament. At the end of it, Eala was thrusted into the WTA Top 75, making up a total of 65 places in a matter of days because of her achievement.
Miami’s hefty pay day was also an added bonus, netting Eala upwards of $332,000 (approximately Php 19,500,000).
May 2025: Grand Slam debut in Paris
After falling painstakingly short of the main draw in qualifying stints multiple times in the past, Eala finally got her shot at a Grand Slam when she was given a main draw slot in Roland Garros thanks to her performance in Miami.
But Eala’s inexperience in high-level competition did get the better of her this time.
Though she did manage to get a set, the 20-year-old fell at the hands of lower-ranked Emiliana Arango, 6-0, 2-6, 6-3.
June 2025: First WTA Final
Despite her setback on clay, Eala was able to get back on her feet quickly when the grass season started.
Even as a newbie on the surface, owing to limited courts to practice on with grass at RNA, Eala showed she could hang with the best of them when she made it to the main draw of the Eastbourne Open — one of the main buildups for Wimbledon.
After beating out American Hailey Baptiste in the qualifying final, Eala strung together four straight wins which included a repeat over Ostapenko, raising her head-to-head record over the Latvian to 2-0.
Going up against fellow qualifier Varvara Gracheva in the semifinals, Eala dug deep against the world no. 111. Favored in their matchup, Eala bucked a second set defeat to win a lopsided third set, 7-5, 2-6, 6-3, en route to her first-ever WTA finale.
Meeting fellow rising star Maya Joint in the championship round, Eala was tested to the maximum.
In a match that deserves its own rewinder, Eala and Joint pushed themselves to the limit in an extended match that featured a lengthy tiebreak in the third set.
But, as luck would have it, the 20-year-old just couldn’t finish the job and settled for a runner-up finish.
Still, with a match that ended with the scoreline 6-4, 1-6, 6(10)-7, Eala could hardly be called second best in the tournament.
While it did leave a sour taste in Eala’s mouth, being unable to win her first WTA title, she was able to take important lessons from the experience and improve on herself.
Shortly after, Eala made her main draw debut in Wimbledon where she fell against defending champion Barbora Krejcikova, 3-6, 6-2, 6-1.
August 2025: Breakthrough in New York
Despite Eala’s missed opportunities since the Miami Open, the 20-year-old was able to get through the biggest hurdle of the year at the US Open.
Historically a great venue for Eala in her career, the Flushing Meadows provided the backdrop for Eala’s first-ever Grand Slam win in the main draw — which marked the first time a Filipino has ever won a singles main draw match at the Slam level.
Going up against higher-ranked Clara Tauson, Eala dug deep to win a heart-stopping tiebreak in the third set to etch her name anew in tennis history for the Philippines, 6-3, 2-6, 7-6(11).
Even as she faltered in the Round of 64 against Spain’s Cristina Bucsa, 6-4, 6-3, Eala was still able to make her mark.
September 2025: Glory in Guadalajara
Buoyed by her first Grand Slam main draw win, Eala entered the WTA 125 in Guadalajara with renewed confidence.
Back on her favorite surface, Eala had a field day in the hard court against lower ranked opponents as the 2-seed.
After surviving an earlier scare against USA’s Varvara Lepchenko where she needed all three sets to march on, 6(3)-7, 7-6(3), 6-3, Eala made sure to clean up her act, picking up wins over Nicole Huergo and Kayla Day in two sets.
During the finale, Eala needed to shake off a surprisingly slow start against Hungary’s Panna Udvardy.
Though lower ranked than Eala at world no. 134, Udvardy did give the Filipina a scare after a dominating 6-1 first set.
Thankfully for Eala, she was able to force the decider with an extended 7-5 victory in Set 2. With momentum on her side, she was able to finish the job with a 6-3 finish in Set 3.
She thus netted her first title in the WTA calendar, along with a $15,500 prize (approximately Php 900,000).
December 2025: Streak-busting triumph in Thailand
While Eala’s last few tournaments on tour were not up to par with a handful of early exits, the 20-year-old’s year did cap with a bang.
Competing in only her second SEA Games, Eala broke through in women’s singles when she netted the gold medal in the SEA Games 2025 in Thailand. Faced against home bets, the 20-year-old stamped her class on the rest of the field.
Though she was denied of a highly-anticipated rematch against Indonesia’s Janice Tjen who retired in the semis due to illness, Eala ended up having to fight Thailand’s Mananchaya Sawangkaew in the battle for the gold medal.
Regardless of who she won it against, Eala was able to end a 26-year drought of gold medals in women’s singles for the Philippines in the SEA Games.
For Eala, it was the perfect ending for a year that had all the ups and downs perfect for a breakout year.
With another year of tennis slated for Eala beginning early January, the excitement is buzzing for what else the Rafa Nadal Academy scholar can achieve.
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Luisa Morales is a sports writer with a special interest in promoting women’s sports.
Her coverage highlights include the UAAP, PVL, Southeast Asian Games, and the FIBA World Cup. She also follows Alex Eala, the Philippine women’s national football team, and mixed martial arts.