Philippines tennis star Alexandra Eala delivered a stunning comeback Wednesday at the Mubadala Abu Dhabi Open, rallying in the deciding set to beat Aliaksandra Sasnovich 2-6, 6-4, 7-6(5).
The world No. 45 rewarded the fans with a performance reminiscent of her 2025 US Open upset against Clara Tauson. Eala now advances to her second consecutive quarterfinal appearance, after reaching the same stage at last week's inaugural Philippine Women's Open on home soil.
Sasnovich dominated early, controlling baseline rallies and building a 31-18 winner advantage in the opening set. The veteran carried her aggressive play into the second set, breaking early before Eala leveled the frame.
After saving multiple second-set break opportunities, Eala finally converted when it mattered most, breaking Sasnovich while serving at 5-4 to force a decisive third set.
Sasnovich surged to a 4-0 lead in the final set, later holding match point while serving at 5-4. However, Eala refused to surrender, saving the match point and winning three consecutive games to reach 6-5 before Sasnovich forced a tiebreak.
In the tiebreaker, Sasnovich led 5-4 before Eala closed with three straight points to secure the dramatic victory after two hours and 46 minutes.
How to watch Alexandra Eala in the Abu Dhabi Open quarterfinal
The 20-year-old Filipina sensation next faces No. 2 Ekaterina Alexandrova in Thursday's quarterfinals, taking the court at 8 AM ET live on the Tennis Channel.
US wildcard entry Hailey Baptiste delivered a stunning upset over world No. 17 Emma Navarro at the Abu Dhabi Open on Tuesday, winning 7-6(6), 0-6, 6-3 in a dramatic three-set battle.
The victory marked unranked Baptiste's fourth-career Top 20 win, as she advanced to her her first WTA 500 quarterfinal. Fourth-seeded Navarro, who entered as a tournament favorite, couldn't go the stretch despite dominating the second frame.
Baptiste saved a set point in the opening tiebreak with an expertly placed volley before clinching the set with a drop shot. Her fellow US talent responded emphatically, blanking her opponent 6-0 in the second set.
The turning point came when Baptiste left the court between sets for a mental reset. The strategy proved effective, as she approached the decider with renewed focus and aggression.
"I just had to grind and keep digging and digging," Baptiste said postmatch.
"Obviously the second set was not great for me, but I'm really happy I was able to turn it around. I just left the court to reset, I didn't really tell myself much — I never really leave the court, so me doing that was enough to reset."
Baptiste broke Navarro at 4-3 in the final set with a powerful forehand winner, then closed out the match with her seventh ace. The win ended Baptiste's three-match losing streak to Emma Navarro, dating back to their first meeting in 2018.
Baptiste will next face 2023 tournament runner-up Liudmila Samsonova in the Abu Dhabi Open quarterfinals. Fellow US player McCartney Kessler also advanced Tuesday, scoring an upset victory over sixth-seeded Leylah Fernandez.
Alexandra Eala continues her ascent in professional tennis, achieving a career-high No. 45 in Monday's WTA rankings update, making her the highest-ranked Filipina player in WTA Tour history.
The 20-year-old left-hander approached her Abu Dhabi Open first-round match against Turkey's Zeynep Sonmez with growing confidence after a breakout 2025 season. Eala lept five spots from her previous career-best No. 49 ranking, continuing her steady progression toward breaking into the WTA Top 40.
Eala's rise stems from her historic Miami Open semifinal run last March, where the wildcard entry stunned three Grand Slam champions in consecutive matches. She defeated No. 24 Jelena Ostapenko, No. 15 Madison Keys, and No. 2 Iga Świątek, becoming the first Filipina to beat a Top 10 player and reach a WTA 1000 semifinal.
Following that performance, Eala reached her first Tour-level final at Eastbourne while capturing her first WTA 125 title in Guadalajara. She finished 2025 at No. 50 before opening 2026 with semifinal appearances in both singles and doubles at the Auckland Open.
The Rafa Nadal Academy trainee recently competed at her first Australian Open but fell in the opening round of both singles and doubles. She then participated in the inaugural Philippine Women's Open as a wildcard, advancing to the quarterfinals before losing to eventual champion Camila Osorio.
Alexandra Eala returns to Abu Dhabi for the first time since her 2024 debut, when she entered at No. 187 via a wildcard and lost to Magda Linette in the first round. Now competing as a Top 50 player, she hopes to become the first Filipina to win the tournament.
"I'm working hard," Eala told reporters. "We're working hard to maintain the level that I'm at, and working even harder to go deeper and higher into the rankings inch by inch."
Alexandra Eala saw her dream of capturing a first WTA title on home soil end Thursday, as the Filipino tennis star fell to Camila Osorio 6-4, 6-4 in the inaugural Philippine Women's Open quarterfinals.
The matchup pitted the former US Open junior champions against each other in their first professional meeting. However, Alexandra Eala proved unable to overcome the Colombian, as the world No. 49 struggled to find her rhythm against the No. 84.
The opening set saw three double-faults from each competitor, as both had difficulty finding consistency in their serves. Osorio later broke through in the seventh game of the first set, then held serve to build a 5-3 advantage. Alexandra Eala could not recover, dropping the opening frame 6-4.
The second set remained competitive through the first eight games, with the score deadlocked at 4-4 after multiple service breaks by both players. However, Osorio elevated her performance at the crucial moment, breaking Alexandra Eala's serve in the ninth game before closing out the match in the 10th.
Statistical analysis revealed tight margins between the players. Both converted second-serve points at an identical 50% rate. The difference emerged on first serves, where Osorio's 59% conversion rate surpassed Alexandra Eala's 51% efficiency, proving decisive in the straight-sets victory.
"I think it was an overall good week," Eala said postmatch.
"Of course, I'm disappointed about today. I definitely think I've had better days, but it's just how it is. I have to accept it, and there’s always next week."
What's next for Alexandra Eala
Alexandra Eala now shifts her focus to the WTA 500 Abu Dhabi Open, set to kick off January 31st. The tournament presents yet another opportunity for the rising Filipina talent to pursue her breakthrough WTA title.
How to watch the Philippine Women's Open semifinals
Meanwhile, fifth-seeded Osorio advances to Friday's semifinal against Solana Sierra as she continues her quest for the Philippine Women's Open championship.
All matches stream live on WTA Unlocked's 125Live.