Alex Eala pulled off one of the biggest shocks in tennis history with an astonishing 6-2, 7-5 win over world No 2 Iga Swiatek on Wednesday.
The world No 140’s win over the five-time Grand Slam champion has sent shockwaves across the tennis world – and has seen Eala make a fair chunk of history.
First Filipina woman to reach a WTA semi-final
Tennis is becoming increasingly a global sport, and Eala’s success is a testament to that.
The 19-year-old is not only the first woman from the Philippines to reach a WTA 1000 final, but she is also the first to reach a semi-final at any WTA event.
She was already the highest-ranked Filipina in the history of the WTA Rankings, having reached a career high of world No 134 back in January 2025.
Reaching SF as a wildcard
Thanks to her connection with IMG – the event owners – Eala received a wildcard into the main draw, having also received wildcards in 2022 and 2023.
However, in the 40 years since the Miami Open was first held in 1985, the teenager is just the third wildcard to reach the last four of the women’s singles event.
And, the previous women to do just that are both world No 1’s and multiple-time Grand Slam winners.
The first wildcard to reach the last four was seven-time major champion Justine Henin, who – like Eala – beat the second seed (Caroline Wozniacki) in the quarter-finals in 2010.
Eight years later, two-time Australian Open champion – and three-time Miami winner – Victoria Azarenka also reached the last four as a wildcard after beating Karolina Pliskova in the last eight.
Both Henin and Azarenka would ultimately lose their semi-finals, meaning Eala could become the first wildcard to reach the final.
Reaching first SF in Miami
Before Miami, Eala had only two WTA main draw victories to her name.
Now, she finds herself in a first WTA semi-final at one of the biggest events in the calendar, and has become only the third woman to reach her first tour semi-final at the Miami Open.
In 1988, a 16-year-old Mary Joe Fernandez reached her first semi-final in Miami, the 15th seed having stunned third seed Gabriela Sabatini in the fourth round.
Three decades later, qualifier – and future Miami Open champion – Danielle Collins reached her first tour semi-final at the event, shocking Venus Williams in the last eight.
Both Collins and Fernandez were beaten in their semi-finals but, encouragingly for Eala, would later reach Grand Slam finals.
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Second-youngest left-handed semi-finalist
Eala has the fairly unique advantage of being a ‘lefty’, something that could cause issues against some players in the future.
And, in the four decades of the Miami Open, only one left-handed woman has reached the semi-final of the event at a younger age than the Filipina.
That player happened to be Monica Seles, undisputedly one of the all-time greats of the sport.
Seles reached back-to-back semi-finals as a 16 and 17-year-old in 1990 and 1991, and would go on to lift the title in both years.
Top 100 breakthrough
Eala had already made rankings history for her nation, with no other women from the Philippines having cracked even the top 200 of the WTA Rankings.
However, the 19-year-old is now guaranteed to become the first Filipina to reach the world’s top 100 thanks to her Miami Open run.
Eala was just outside the top 100 of the live rankings, but having beaten Swiatek, she has moved up to world No 75 – a staggering leap of 65 places.
She would move inside the top 60 if she reached the final, and inside the top 40 should she lift the title.
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