History is made as Alex Eala wins US Open girls’ singles crown

A new chapter in history has been written by Alex Eala. On Saturday, September 10, at the US Open final in New York, Eala defeated Lucie Havlickova, 6-2, 6-4, to become the first Filipino to win a junior Grand Slam singles title (Sunday, September 11, Manila time).

The 10th seed Eala defeated the second seed Czech to win another championship, extending her winning streak in the competition, which included two junior Grand Slam doubles victories.

“I think this is a huge step for me personally. I’m super happy to represent my country and do something of worth, with a big platform and being able to inspire other younger people,” Eala said.

The 17-year-old Eala fell behind 1-2 in the first set before leveling the match by winning a seesaw fourth game that included five ties.

After breaking Havlickova in games five and seven, Eala went on to win the next four games to take the set and take command of the contest.
The current junior French Open champion, Havlickova, fought valiantly and even managed to edge Eala by a score of 4-3 in the second set.

However, Eala recovered her composure as she finished the set at 4-4, broke Havlickova once again in the ninth game for a 5-4 lead, and won the match in the tenth game.

At match point, after making 39 mistakes, Havlickova hit a backhand shot that found the net as Eala and the Filipino spectators present at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center erupted in jubilation.

Eala finished the event without dropping a set, defeating the eighth-seeded Australian Taylah Preston, the fourteenth-seeded Russian Mirra Andreeva, and the ninth-seeded Canadian Victoria Mboko.