Eala makes history, rises to world No. 50

Alex Eala made history as she emerged as the first Filipino to crack into the top 50 of the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) ranking following a string of solid performances in the professional circuit.

The 20-year-old Filipina blazed the trail for Philippine tennis as she piled 1143 points to end her season as the world’s No. 50 — a ranking that no Filipino had ever reached before.

She started her season at No. 158 but slowly climbed the totem pole after putting up impressive finishes that captured the imagination of professional tennis. Her breakthrough came in March when she shocked elite players like world No. 2 Iga Swiatek of Poland, world No. 25 Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia and world No. 5 Madison Keys of the United States to make it to the semifinals.

Although she lost to world No. 4 Jessica Pegula of the US in the Last Four, it was still a mission accomplished for her as she essayed one of the greatest Cinderella stories in the WTA, where she ranked from No. 140 to No. 75 that gave her a direct access to the main draw of Grand Slam events.

She made her Grand Slam main draw debut in the French Open in May before seizing her first ever WTA 125 title in the Guadalajara Open in September.

Since then, Eala was unstoppable as she stamped her brilliance in major events around the world.

“My season has come to an end. I have no words to describe what 2025 has brought me. My dreams have truly come alive,” said Eala, reflecting on her very successful 2025 seaosn.

In her season-ending tournament in the Hong Kong Tennis Open over the weekend, Eala pushed Canadian champion Victoria Mboko to the limit before absorbing a 6-3, 3-6, 4-6 loss in the Round of 16. Mboko then went on to win the title and improved to world No. 18.

But Eala is far from done.

Eala, who is in the country for a much-needed breather, is setting her sights on the gold medal of the 33rd Southeast Asian Games in Bangkok from 9 to 20 December.

The SEA Games, however, will not be easy as she will go up Janice Tjen of Indonesia, who also soared to No. 53 after conquering the WTA 250 Chennai Open title over the weekend.

Still, her past season was a mission accomplished for the Filipina tennis superstar.

“It’s such a privilege to look back at this year and relive amazing moments through memory,” said Eala, expressing gratitude to those who made her 2025 season truly remarkable.

“All that’s happened this season and the emotions that come with it is a love letter to my family, friends, team, every supporter across my journey in tennis, and of course, baby Alex.”

“This marks the beginning of what I hope to be a long, happy and fruitful career on tour. Thank you everybody, see you in 2026!”