After making history as the first Filipino to make it to the semifinals of a WTA 1000 event in Miami last week, Alex Eala made another breakthrough as she is now ranked as world No. 75 in the Women’s Tennis Association ranking.

The 19-year-old Eala made a huge jump from No. 140 to No. 75 following her giant-killing exploits in the Miami Open — a prestigious event that is just one rung lower than the Grand Slam — last week.

With that, Eala became the first Filipino to crack into the top 100 of the WTA since the ranking system was introduced in 1975. She is also now the best-ranked player in Southeast Asia, 35 notches ahead of Mananchaya Sawangkaew of Thailand.

Prior to Eala, the highest-ranking Filipino in the world was Cecil Mamiit, who had a career-best No. 72 in the Association of Tennis Professionals ranking in 1999.

Belarusian superstar Aryna Sabalenka still ranks as world No. 1 while Arya Sabalenka of Poland is at No. 2 despite bowing to Eala in the quarterfinals of the Miami Open.

But more than the ranking and the bragging rights that go along with it, Eala’s improvement puts her inside the top 104 in the world, which means that she doesn’t have to go through the grueling qualifying phases of major events like the French Open, the US Open and the Wimbledon.

She is expected to advance straight to the main draw if ever she decides to see action in the Mutua Madrid Open — also a WTA 1000 event — in Spain from 21 April to 4 May.

“I recognize that these two weeks have opened the door to so many opportunities for me, but along with those opportunities come a whole new set of obstacles I will have to navigate through,” Eala said in a social media post.

“The real work starts now.”

Eala’s rise was truly a Cinderella story.

Despite making it as a wildcard, she still started her campaign on a high note as she beat world No. 73 Katie Volynets of the United States in the Round of 128 before pulling off an upset of world No. 25 and French Open champion Jeļena Ostapenko of Latvia in the Round of 64.

Eala then defeated Australian Open champion and world No. 5 Madison Keys of the US in the Round of 32, making her an overnight sensation at the Hard Rock Stadium.

Eala drew a lucky break after world No. 11 Paula Badosa of Spain withdrew from their Round of 16 clash due to a lower back injury, setting the stage for a titanic clash against Swiatek.

But the Filipina refused to get intimidated. Instead, she matched the five-time Grand Slam champion’s power and experience with hard work and fighting spirit until she pulled off a 6-2, 7-5 upset to advance to the semifinals.

Eventually, she lost to world No. 4 Jessica Pegula in a gritty battle, 6-7, 7-5, 3-6, to bomb out of competition but pocket her biggest paycheck of P19 million.