Tennis star Alex Eala made history at the 2025 US Open, becoming the first Filipino to win a singles match at a Grand Slam tournament in the Open era — a feat that even President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. said marks “only the beginning” of her journey.
“She’s only getting started! Congratulations, @alex.eala! Kasama mo ang buong Pilipinas sa bawat laban mo. Sama-sama naming isisigaw sa mundo ang galing ng Pilipino!” President Marcos said in an Instagram story on Monday, August 25.
Eala became the first Filipino to win a main draw singles match at a Grand Slam tournament in the professional era after upsetting 14th seed Clara Tauson of Denmark, 6-3, 2-6, 7-6 (13-11), in the first round of the U.S. Open on Sunday (Monday in Manila).
The 20-year-old fought back from 1-5 down in the final set before sealing victory in a dramatic tiebreak.
“It means a lot, I think you could see by my reaction,” Eala told reporters, recalling how she burst into tears amid raucous support from the Grandstand crowd.
“I’m so blessed to be the first to do this. It makes what I do bigger than myself, and it adds meaning to what I do.”
The win adds to Eala’s growing list of milestones. In 2022, she became the first Filipino to capture a junior Grand Slam singles title, also at Flushing Meadows.
She now advances to the second round, where she will face either Spain’s Cristina Bucsa or American qualifier Claire Liu.
Eala also celebrated the progress of tennis in the region, noting the breakthrough of Indonesia’s Janice Tjen, who defeated 24th seed Veronika Kudermetova. “I’m so happy to see the progress of tennis in Southeast Asia in general,” she said. —with a report from Reuters
