MANILA — Alexandra Eala made history as the first Filipino to reach a Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) singles final but fell short of capturing the title to Australia’s Maya Joint in a dramatic three-set final at the Lexus Eastbourne Open in Great Britain on Saturday.
Eala, 20, led in the final-set super tiebreak and held four championship points but was unable to close out the match, eventually falling 4-6, 6-1, 6(10)-7.
Fighting back tears during the trophy presentation, Eala said, “It’s my first WTA final. It’s a big deal for me and for my country because it’s historic. It’s the first time any Filipina has done anything like this. I guess that’s also why I’m so emotional.”
Despite a slow start, Eala rallied after dropping the opening set, dominating the second to force a deciding set.
The final came down to a nerve-wracking super tie-breaker, where Eala was within a point of victory multiple times before Joint, showing composure under pressure, converted her second match point.
Eala, who entered the tournament as a qualifier, delivered a Cinderella run on her way to the final. She defeated Zeynep Sönmez (Turkey) and Hailey Baptiste (USA) in the early rounds, before upsetting several higher-ranked players, including world No. 61 Lucia Bronzetti, former French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko (via retirement), No. 42 Dayana Yastremska, and No. 111 Varvara Gracheva.
In her on-court remarks, Eala was gracious in defeat.
“I want to congratulate Maya for a great match and a great tournament,” she said. “If I were to lose to anyone this week, it would definitely be you.”
The Eastbourne final marked the youngest combined age of finalists at the tournament since 1981.
The next stop for Eala is Wimbledon, the third of four grand slam events. She faces defending champion Barbora Krejcikova of the Czech Republic in Monday’s main draw. PNA