Alex Eala Upsets World No. 5 Madison Keys Two Days After Beautiful No. 25 Ostapenko

Filipino tennis prodigy Alex Eala retains her meteoric rise after a surprising win over world No. 5 and present Australian Open champion Madison Keys.

The teenager served a masterclass to take the 6-4, 6-2 victory within the Round of 32 of the WTA 1000 Miami Open, turning into the primary feminine Filipino athlete within the Open Era to defeat a top-10 participant.

Eala Secures Historic Win Against Top-Ranked Player

The current days have been arduous for Eala. Tiring could be an understatement to explain her expertise after upsetting World No. 25 Jelena Ostapenko. For the primary time in her profession, her nerves of metal and perseverance paid off after she locked in her WTA match Final 16 entry, in keeping with Tennis.com.

“I’m so blank,” Eala shared throughout her post-match interview, visibly emotional as Filipino supporters waved their flags in celebration. “I’m thinking of my parents. ‘Mom and Dad, nakuha ko! (“I received it!”) My God.”

Eala’s trek was fueled by her hard-earned 7-6 (2), 7-5 win over the previous French Open champion within the second spherical. Not solely was it a private milestone—it was a historic one for Philippine tennis.

Eala is the primary Filipino participant to beat a Top 30 participant since 1975, when the WTA rankings started, after beating Elise Mertens in the primary draw.

The win is much more spectacular on condition that Eala is the lone Filipino participant competing on the skilled tennis circuit immediately with no different Filipino man or lady ranked within the Top 1000.

Strong Performance Against Keys Seals the Win for Eala

Keys, a Grand Slam campaigner, dominated the match by profitable 4 of the primary seven video games. But Eala reversed the state of affairs with a vital break within the ninth recreation to win the primary set 6-4.

That took its toll into the second set, the place the 19-year-old participant broke Keys on two events, at 3-2 and 5-2, en path to the match win inside 1 hour and 27 minutes.

Eala was impressively disciplined herself, with one double fault from her in comparison with Keys’ 4, and changing Keys’ essential unforced errors to seal victories.

Eala had been coaching within the Rafael Nadal academy in Mallorca since she was 13. She and Keys traded serve photographs for the primary seven video games, but it surely was the 2022 US Open ladies’ singles champ who broke the latter’s momentum to seize the primary set at 5-4, per The Athletic.

Paula Badosa Waits within the Next Round

Eala’s path doesn’t turn into less complicated as she will face Spain’s Paula Badosa, a previous world No. 2, within the Round of 16 on Tuesday, March 25.

Badosa, the present World No. 11, superior after beating Denmark’s Clara Tauson 6-3, 7-6 (3).

Eala confessed that there have been occasions when she gained good matches, however she misplaced the following one. This time, she desires to show that she was greater than prepared and ready to grab her second.