Eala hits career-high ranking, begins clay season in Portugal

Filipina tennis sensation Alex Eala is back in action and making headlines once again — this time not just for her powerful play, but also for achieving a new career milestone. 

Fresh off her historic run at the Miami Open, the 19-year-old continues to climb the WTA rankings and now enters the clay court season with momentum on her side.

As of April 14, Eala has officially reached a career-high world ranking of No. 72, gaining three spots since her sensational semi final-finish in Miami. 

Starting that tournament as World No. 140, she shocked the tennis world by taking down some of the biggest names in the game — including Madison Keys, Jelena Ostapenko, and top seed Iga Swiatek — before narrowly falling to Jessica Pegula in a gritty three-set match.

Now, after a short break from competition, Eala returns to the court at the Oeiras Ladies Open in Portugal, her first appearance on clay this season. Notably, she enters the tournament as the No. 1 seed — a first for the young star in any WTA-level event.

Eala was off to a solid start in her Oeiras Ladies Open debut before heavy rain disrupted her momentum and forced the suspension of her opening-round match in Portugal on Monday (Manila time).

Facing 21-year-old Anouk Koevermans of the Netherlands, Eala claimed the first set with authority, 6-3, using her trademark aggressive serving and precision shot-making to control the rallies. The 19-year-old Filipina looked poised to advance but found herself trailing 2-4 in the second set when torrential rain poured down, halting play just over an hour into the match.

It was the first time the two met, and Eala initially appeared in command. However, after seizing the opening set, Koevermans bounced back with three straight games in the second before Eala broke serve to stop the run. Another hold from Koevermans reestablished her lead at 4-2 before worsening weather conditions suspended play on Center Court.

Multiple restart attempts were made, including one after a 20-minute pause and another warm-up following an hour’s delay, but each time the rain returned, soaking the court and making conditions unplayable. The decision on whether the match will resume later in the evening or be pushed to the next day remains pending.

Now aiming for her first WTA title, Eala also entered the doubles event in Portugal, teaming up with Katie Volynets to face Christina Rosca and Carmen Corley.