Eala storms into top 60

Alex Eala made a return to the top 60 of the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) ranking following a string of solid performances in the professional circuit.

The Filipina tennis sensation climbed four notches up to No. 57 after posting seven consecutive victories in the Guadalajara 125 Open in Mexico and the Sao Paulo Open in Brazil last week.

Belarusian powerhouse Aryna Sabalenka remains untouchable at No. 1 while Iga Swiatek of Poland, Coco Gauff, Amanda Anisimova and Mirra Andreeva of the United States comprise the top five with Madison Keys and Jessica Pegula of the US, Jasmine Paolini of Italy, Qinwen Zheng of China, and Elena Rybakina occupying the six to 10 spots.

Indonesian Janice Tjen is still outside the top 100 at No. 103 despite beating Eala in the quarterfinals before beating Francesca Jones of Great Britain in the semifinals of the Sao Paulo Open. She, however, get stunned by world No. 214 Tiantsoa Rakotomanga Rajaonah of France in the final.

On the other hand, the 20-year-old Eala keeps rising.

The Rafael Nadal Academy-trained lefty made a breakthrough title in Mexico when she pulled off a 1-6, 7-5, 6-3 win over Panna Udvardy of Hungary in the final round.

Then, she flew to Brazil to sustain her momentum in Sao Paulo, starting with a 6-0, 6-1 win over qualifier Yasmine Mansouri of France in the Round of 32 followed by a 6-1, 6-4 triumph over Julia Riera of Argentina in the Round of 16 to set the stage for a quarterfinal battle with Tjen, who could be her rival in the 33rd Southeast Asian (SEA) Games in Thailand this December.

Although Eala fell short with a 4-6, 1-6 defeat, she was still able to pocket $6,815 — or roughly P389,000 — for advancing to the Last Eight in the prestigious Brazilian event.

Eala is on her way to Manila for a brief rest before going to China for the Jiangshan Tennis Open, a WTA 125 tournament, set from 22 to 28 September. She could also extend her stay in China if she joins the Wuhan Open on 6 October.

With the Wuhan Open regarded as a WTA 1000 event, Eala will again be crossing paths with other heavyweights like Swiatek, Keys and Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia for a chance to recreate her magic in the Miami Open last March.

Eala’s Spanish coach Joan Bosch, however, said they are still plotting the tournaments they will join for the remainder of 2025.

“I think our idea is to play two tournaments in China. One will be a 125 event then we will play one 1000 tournament. We’re still deciding because with her ranking, you are in between the 250 main draw or 500 qualifiers so we’re still deciding,” Bosch said.

“But for sure the next ones will be two tournaments: The 125 and 1000.”

Eala will cap off her spectacular year with an appearance for Team Philippines in the SEA Games.