Alex Eala

Alexandra Maniego Eala (born May 23, 2005) is a Filipino professional tennis player.
She has a career-high singles ranking of No. 69 by the WTA, achieved on May 19, 2025, making her the highest-ranked Filipina player in WTA Tour history, surpassing Maricris Gentz and becoming the first player to reach the top 100 in the WTA Rankings.
Eala was the No. 2 ranked junior on October 6, 2020. Eala won her first junior singles title at the 2022 US Open, making her the first Filipino player to win a junior Grand Slam singles title. She is also the first Filipina to defeat multiple top-5 players and Grand Slam champions and reach a tour-level semifinal in the Open Era.

Personal life

Her mother, Rosemarie "Rizza" Maniego-Eala, is a 1985 Southeast Asian Games bronze medalist in the 100-meter backstroke and a retired chief financial officer of Globe Telecom. She is the niece of former Philippine Sports Commission chairperson and Philippine Basketball Association commissioner Noli Eala. Her brother, Michael (Miko), played tennis for the Pennsylvania State University Nittany Lions from 2020 to 2024.

Eala attended the Immaculate Conception Academy in San Juan and Colegio San Agustin in Makati before transferring to the Rafa Nadal Academy in Manacor, Mallorca, Spain, where she has been studying since she was 12 years old.

Career

Juniors: First Filipino Grand Slam champion

At the age of 12, Eala won the 2018 Les Petit As 14-and-under tournament, beating Linda Nosková in the finals. She made her junior major debut at the 2019 US Open. She was named the 2019 Milo Junior Athlete of the Year. Eala won the 2020 Australian girls' doubles event, partnering Priska Madelyn Nugroho. They defeated Živa Falkner and Matilda Mutavdzic in the final. Eala peaked in the junior rankings at No. 2, after reaching the semifinals at the 2020 French Open girls' singles competition.

Following a major triumph at the French Open in 2021, Eala paid tribute to her roots on Independence Day. Partnering Russia’s Oksana Selekhmeteva, she claimed the girls' doubles title as the tournament’s top seed. The pair defeated Maria Bondarenko of Russia and Amarissa Kiara Tóth of Hungary in the final.

In September 2022, Eala became the first Filipino player to win a junior Grand Slam singles championship and the only Filipino with multiple junior major titles. She defeated the No. 2 seed, Lucie Havlíčková of the Czech Republic, in the girls' singles final of the US Open at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York.

Juniors Grand Slam performance

Grand Slam performance - singles:
* Australian Open: 3R (2020)
* French Open: SF (2020)
* Wimbledon: 2R (2021)
* US Open: W (2022)

Grand Slam performance - doubles:
* Australian Open: W (2020)
* French Open: W (2021)
* Wimbledon: 2R (2021)
* US Open: SF (2021)

2020–2022: Turned pro, WTA Tour debut

In March 2020, Eala made her debut on the ITF Women's Circuit, as she played in the $15k event at Monastir, Tunisia, where she won her first professional match.

In January 2021, she leaped to the top 1,000 in the WTA rankings, after winning the title at the first leg of the $15k Manacor event in Spain. She received a wildcard into the qualifying draw of the Miami Open where she lost to Viktória Kužmová in three sets in the first round. Eala made her first ITF doubles final at the $25k Platja d'Aro in Spain, playing with Oksana Selekhmeteva. They lost to Lithuania's Justina Mikulskytė and Romanian Oana Georgeta Simion, 3–6, 5–7. In August 2021, she made her WTA Tour main-draw debut at the 2021 Winners Open in Cluj-Napoca, Romania, after receiving a wildcard. In her first match, she defeated Paula Ormaechea in straight sets. She lost in the second round to Mayar Sherif, also in straight sets.

She received a wildcard making her WTA 1000 debut at the 2022 Miami Open, losing to Madison Brengle in the first round. Eala represented the Philippines at the 2021 SEA Games in Hanoi, Vietnam, which were postponed to May 2022 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. She earned a bronze medal in each of the three events she participated in: women's team (with Marian Capadocia, Shaira Hope Rivera, and Jenaila Rose Prulla), mixed doubles (with Treat Huey), and women's singles.

2023–2025: First Filipina in semifinal, top 100

In 2023, Eala made her debut in the qualifying draw of the Australian Open but she lost her first match to Misaki Doi in three sets. She qualified for the Thailand Open but lost in the first round to sixth seed Tatjana Maria. She received wildcards for the main draw at the 2023 Miami Open and at the Madrid Open. She entered the top 200 in August 2023, and reached a new career-high ranking of world No. 191 on September 18, 2023. At the Asian Games, she won two bronze medals, one in the women's singles and the second in the mixed doubles with Francis Alcantara.

Eala started the 2024 season in the Canberra Tennis International.
In doubles, she partnered with the Brazilian player Laura Pigossi, reaching the semifinals. The Filipino-Brazilian duo was defeated by the Australian pair Kaylah McPhee and Astra Sharma in straight sets. She received wildcards for the qualifying draw at the 2024 Miami Open, and for the main draw at the Madrid Open. During the 2024 Miami Open, she stunned former world No. 5, Sara Errani, during the first round of qualifying winning in straight sets. However, in the second round of qualifying, she suffered cramps and lost to Emiliana Arango. At the Madrid Open, she recorded her first WTA 1000 win over Lesia Tsurenko. She then lost in three sets against 27th seed Sorana Cirstea.

Eala entered the qualifying rounds of the 2024 French Open where she beat Ma Yexin of China and Taylah Preston of Australia to reach the final round, where she lost in another three-set match to Julia Riera of Argentina. For the Wimbledon Championships, she entered the qualifying rounds and reached the final qualifying match where she lost to eventual quarterfinalist Lulu Sun. After Wimbledon, Eala entered the 2024 Open Araba en Femenino, a W100 tournament, where she triumphed in both singles and doubles. She won the title in singles without dropping a set. In doubles, she and her partner Estelle Cascino, won their second doubles crown. She reached a new career-high ranking in both singles and doubles, at world No. 143 and No. 208 respectively on July 22, 2024. Eala entered the 2024 US Open qualifying competition, where she again reached the final qualifying round, losing to 20th seed Elena-Gabriela Ruse. She qualified for the main draw of the WTA 500 Guadalajara Open, losing in the first round to sixth seed Marie Bouzková.

Ranked No. 140, Eala received a wildcard entry at the 2025 Miami Open where she defeated Katie Volynets and 25th seed Jeļena Ostapenko to reach the third round for the first time at the WTA 1000-level. She went one step further and defeated world No. 5, Madison Keys, to reach a WTA 1000 fourth round for the first time, her first top-10 and also top-5 win. Eala became the first Filipino player in the Open Era to beat a top-10 and a top-5 player, since the WTA Tour rankings for women’s tennis were first published in 1975. Eala was also the first player ranked outside the top 100 to reach the round of 16 in a 1000 event in the season. Eala reached her first WTA 1000 quarterfinal after receiving a walkover from Paula Badosa and then upset world No. 2, Iga Świątek, in straight sets to reach her first career semifinal. She became the first Filipina in WTA Tour history to reach the semifinal stage and the third player overall to reach her first WTA Tour semifinal in Miami after Mary Joe Fernández and Danielle Collins. Eala also became the first Filipino to make her debut in the top 100 in the history of the WTA rankings at world No. 75 on March 31, 2025. She lost in the last four to world No. 4, Jessica Pegula, in three sets.

Following her entry into the top 100, Eala entered the WTA 125 2025 Oieras Ladies Open as the tournament's top seed, losing to Panna Udvardy in the event's second round. She received a wildcard entry to the 2025 Madrid Open, reaching the second round before ultimately losing a three-set rematch to Iga Świątek. Making her Italian Open debut, Eala entered the tournament as the first Filipina to compete in the main draw of a competition as a top 100 player, losing to world No. 27 Marta Kostyuk in the first round. In doubles, she partnered with Coco Gauff to reach the quarterfinals, losing to third-seed defending champions Jasmine Paolini and Sara Errani in three sets. Eala entered the 2025 French Open as the first Filipino to appear on the main draw of a Grand Slam in the Open Era, losing in the first round to a rematch against world No. 88 Emiliana Arango. Partnered with Renata Zarazúa in doubles, Eala reached the second round of the tournament and lost to Olga Danilovic and Anastasia Potapova.

Eala began her grass season at the WTA 125 2025 Birmingham Open as the tournament's third seed, losing in the first round to Linda Fruhvirtova in three sets.

Other activities

Endorsements

Eala signed her first endorsement deal at eight years old, becoming an ambassador to Filipino telecommunications company Globe. Starting from her junior career, she has been sponsored by French tennis brand Babolat. In 2019, she signed a sponsorship deal to represent Nike. 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''.

Accolades

In April 2025, Eala was awarded the Premios Tanglaw trophy by the Philippine embassy in Madrid for her contributions to strengthening Philippines–Spain relations.

Performance timeline

''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.''

Singles

''Current through the 2025 Miami Open.''

ITF Circuit finals

Singles: 8 (5 titles, 3 runner-ups)

Doubles: 4 (3 titles, 1 runner-up)

Junior Grand Slam finals

Singles: 1 (1 title)

Doubles: 2 (2 titles)

ITF Junior finals

Singles: 9 (4 titles, 5 runner-ups)

Doubles: 5 (3 titles, 2 runner-ups)

Wins over top-10 players

* Eala has a record against players who were, at the time the match was played, ranked in the top 10.

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References

External links

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Eala, Alexandra
Sportspeople from Quezon City
Living people
2005 births
Grand Slam (tennis) champions in girls' doubles
Filipino expatriate sportspeople in Spain
Filipino female tennis players
Filipino YouTubers
French Open junior champions
Australian Open (tennis) junior champions
Competitors at the 2021 SEA Games
SEA Games bronze medalists for the Philippines
SEA Games medalists in tennis
Grand Slam (tennis) champions in girls' singles
US Open (tennis) junior champions
Tennis players at the 2022 Asian Games
Medalists at the 2022 Asian Games
Asian Games medalists in tennis
Asian Games bronze medalists for the Philippines
21st-century Filipino sportswomen