FILIPINA tennis sensation Alex Eala finally won her first WTA Tour championship by completing a reverse sweep in style against world No. 3 Jessica Pegula, 4-6, 6-4, 6-0, in the Mubadala DC Open final early Tuesday, Aug. 4, 2026 (PH time), at the William H.G. FitzGerald Tennis Center in Washington, DC.
In the championship match that spanned two days after stormy weather in the American capital forced a postponement, Eala finished the job in dominating fashion to finally call herself a bona fide WTA Tour champ.
Eala arrived at the venue as the breakout star of the tournament, carrying the hopes of an entire nation on her shoulders.
Philippine flags dotted the stands throughout Monday’s rain-delayed final and were still prominently displayed when play resumed Tuesday. The packed lower bowl repeatedly erupted in chants for Eala, often drowning out the support for the hometown favorite Pegula.
“It’s not fun to play against, but I do appreciate the really fun atmosphere,” Pegula said of the crowd. “I think it’s amazing.”
Down 4-6 in Set 1, Eala held a 2-1 lead in Set 2 before the rain delay.
When play finally resumed, both Eala and Pegula held serves until the former scored a crucial break point to force Set 3.
The final set was virtually all-Eala as she broke Pegula’s serve in Games 2 and 4 to eventually go 5-0 up.
Eala even had a chance to sweep Game 6 when she was 40-0 up until Pegula finally scored a point to save a break.
However, Pegula still lost steam as she swung the ball too wide to her left in the next play, eventually giving Eala the deciding set bagel and the championship.
Overcome with emotion, Eala collapsed to the court with her head buried in her hands as tears welled in her eyes. She then rose, embraced Pegula at the net, and let out a triumphant scream.
Eala became the first Southeast Asian player to win a WTA 500 tournament. She also captured her third pro trophy overall, adding to the two WTA 125 titles she already owns.
“I think I warmed up a thousand times. It was difficult, I think ... at the same time, it’s happened to me a lot; rain delays a lot of times in my life. I think this is just kind of another one of those, although it was a lot higher stakes. But I think I was able to take my time and take those learnings from the first half of the match and do my best to apply them in the second, and I think it worked pretty well,” said the 21-year-old Eala in a news release on the WTA website.
The left-hander eliminated No. 2 seed Elina Svitolina (6-3, 6-4), No. 3 seed Naomi Osaka (6-4, 6-2), No. 7 seed and defending champion Leylah Fernandez (6-2, 7-6 [7]) and 2024 Paris Olympics champion Zheng Qinwen (4-6, 6-4, 6-1) on her way to the final.
“At the beginning of the week, there is no way I would have thought that I would be holding this trophy ... These things kind of creep up on you, and I hold these moments really close to me,” said Eala, who is expected to break into the Top 20 for the first time.
Fritz wins title
In the men’s final later Tuesday, third seed Taylor Fritz defeated Spain’s Rafael Jodar, 7-6 (2), 6-4, to capture the title.
Fritz broke Jodar’s serve twice early in the second set and finally sealed the victory on his fifth championship point after squandering four earlier chances.
The American collapsed onto the court after clinching the 11th ATP Tour title of his career, remaining on the ground for a few moments before rising with a relieved smile as the tension of finally closing out the match gave way.
Currently ranked No. 29 in the world, Eala earned a first-round bye in the upcoming WTA 1000 Canadian Open.
The singles gold medalist at the 2025 Thailand SEA Games will kick off her Canadian Open campaign in the main draw on Wednesday, Aug. 5, in Ontario. / PNA
