Filipino tennis ace Alexandra Eala ‘so grateful’ after making history at US Open
Epic comeback to beat No 14 seed Clara Tauson makes her the first player from the Philippines to win a grand slam match in Open era
Alexandra Eala paid tribute to her supporters after she made history on Sunday by becoming the first player from the Philippines to win a tennis grand slam match in the Open era.
The 20-year-old staged a remarkable recovery to beat No 14 seed Clara Tauson 6-3, 2-6, 7-6 in their first-round match, after the Dane led 5-1 in the third set.
The New York metropolitan area is one of the largest Filipino diasporas in the western hemisphere, with more than 260,000 people claiming heritage from the Southeast Asian country.
And cheered on by a strong showing of Filipino spectators, Eala turned the match around at Flushing Meadows.
“To be Filipino is something I take so much pride in,” Eala said. “I don’t have a home tournament, so to be able to have this community here at the US Open, I’m so grateful they made me feel like I’m home.”
Overcome with emotion, Eala fell to the floor after winning the third set to seal the victory. She later said that past experiences had helped her dig deep to clinch the tiebreak 13-11.