Mar 26, 2025; Miami, FL, USA; Alex Eala of the Philippines celebrates after her match against Iga Swiatek in the quarterfinals of Miami Open at Hard Rock Stadium. Geoff Burke-Imagn Images
Philippine wild card Alex Eala pulled off the biggest win of her young career with a stunning 6-2 7-5 upset of Polish world number two Iga Swiatek on Wednesday to extend her dream run at the Miami Open into the semi-finals.
The big-hitting 19-year-old showed no signs of intimidation playing against one of her idols and was instead a picture of poise as she dismantled Swiatek’s serve early on to grab control of the match and never looked back.
Alex Eala: Philippines’ smash hit on path toward tennis stardom
“I don’t know what to say, I mean, complete just disbelief right now and I am on cloud nine,” Eala, the first woman from the Philippines to reach the last eight of a WTA 1000 tournament, said in her on-court interview.
“It’s forever in my heart.”
Mar 26, 2025; Miami, FL, USA; Alex Eala (PHL)(R) shakes hands with Iga Swiatek (POL)(L) at the net after their match on day nine of the Miami Open at Hard Rock Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-Imagn Images
Swiatek, who was playing the match with added security after being verbally abused by a spectator at the weekend, failed to hold serve throughout the first set while Eala was swinging freely as she unleashed winners from all over the court.
Five-time Grand Slam champion Swiatek hit a staggering 19 unforced errors in the opening set and then received some advice from her coach before briefly leaving the court.
In the second set Eala managed to overturn a 4-2 deficit and then held her nerve while Swiatek tried to serve out the set at 5-4 before ultimately closing it out with her eighth break of the match.
“It’s just surreal,” Eala, who moved to Spain at the age of 13 to join Rafael Nadal’s academy in Mallorca, said. “I’m trusting my shots and I have a great team to tell me that I can do it.”
READ: Alex Eala gives Filipino tennis hopefuls a reluctant hero
For Eala, the victory over Swiatek marked the third Grand Slam winner she had knocked out of the women’s draw after earlier wins over Australian Open champion Madison Keys and 2017 French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko.
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Up next for Eala will be the winner of the day’s other quarter-final between American fourth seed Jessica Pegula and 2021 U.S. Open champion Emma Raducanu of Britain.
