Examining Alex Eala’s rise in WTA rankings one year after Cinderella run in Miami Open

Alta Sports18 days ago · 506 views

Examining Alex Eala’s rise in WTA rankings one year after Cinderella run in Miami Open image

By Joel Reyes

What a difference a year makes. Alex Eala was a virtual unknown last year when she made the trip to Florida to compete in the 2025 Miami Open. She stunned the tennis world, though, after qualifying for the main draw as a wildcard, beating three Grand Slam champions in succession to reach her first-ever WTA 1000 semifinal.

This time around, Eala is a global tennis superstar, with Filipino fans flocking to her matches all over the world. She arrives at the 2026 Miami Open with heightened expectations, entering the tournament as a seeded player.

Alta Sports looks back at Eala’s previous ranking when she started her 2025 Miami Open campaign and how it compares to her current position ahead of the 2026 edition.

2025 Miami Open

Not much was expected from Eala when she entered the Miami Open last year. She arrived at the tournament ranked 140th in the world and with only two main draw victories to her name.

Against all odds, Eala advanced to the semifinals, beating Katie Volynets in the first round before recording upset wins against Grand Slam champs Jelena Ostapenko, Madison Keys, and Iga Swiatek.

She came close to reaching her first-ever WTA 1000 final, losing in three sets to Jessica Pegula in the semifinals. The loss didn’t dampen Eala’s mood as she gained 390 points to move up to No. 75 in the WTA rankings. Back then, that was the highest ranking ever achieved by a Filipino.

2026 Miami Open

A lot has changed since Eala’s Cinderella run last year, with the Quezon City native now one of the top stars on the WTA Tour. She made history ahead of this year’s Miami Open, cracking the top 30 for the first time in her WTA career after climbing to 29th in the world rankings.

Reaching the Round of 16 at Indian Wells saw Eala achieve that career-best ranking and helped her receive a bye in the first round of the 2026 Miami Open as the No. 31 seed in the tournament.

Eala will begin her campaign against Laura Siegemund in the second round and is on a collision course to face World No. 3 Iga Swiatek in the third round.

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