Rafael Nadal leads praise as Alexandra Eala becomes first Filipino to win WTA title with DC Open final victory over Jessica Pegula
Updated 04/08/2026 at 14:35 GMT+1
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Rafael Nadal hailed Alexandra Eala as she made history to become the first player from the Philippines to win a WTA Tour-level singles title, with a 4-6 6-4 6-0 victory over top seed Jessica Pegula in a rain-delayed DC Open final.
'I kind of just blacked out' - Eala on nerves in closing moments of DC Open final
Video credit: SNTV
The 21-year-old had to come from behind after the match was suspended on Sunday night because of bad weather in the US capital.
At 1-2 down in the second set, Eala then won nine successive games to storm to victory when the match restarted on Monday.
She is the latest product of the Rafa Nadal Academy, having moved to Mallorca at the age of 12 before graduating in 2023 and turning professional in 25.
After Eala's first WTA 500 title, Nadal wrote on social media: "Congratulations!
"What an incredible week in Washington! A well-deserved [trophy] for all the hard work.
"Congratulations to [the Phillipines] and to the entire Academy team!"
Eala, who lost to Pegula in the semi-finals of the Miami Open last year, admitted it had been a "crazy 24 hours".
"I think I warmed up a thousand times," she said. "It was difficult... at the same time, it's happened to me a lot; rain delays a lot of times in my life. I think this is just kind of another one of those, although it was a lot higher stakes.
"But I think I was able to take my time and take those learnings from the first half of the match and do my best to apply them in the second, and I think it worked pretty well."
Eala came close to winning a first career tour-level singles final last year, losing to Australian Maya Joint in the Eastbourne Open final after a deciding-set tie-break.
There was no such disappointment in Washington, though, as she showed impressive resolve to overcome Pegula, having beaten No. 2 seed Elina Svitolina, No. 3 seed Naomi Osaka, and No. 7 seed and defending champion Leylah Fernandez en route to the final.
As a result of her success, Eala has climbed to 20th in the WTA rankings and will be one of the players to watch in the women's draw at upcoming tournaments.
"At the beginning of the week, there is no way I would have thought that I would be holding this trophy. These things kind of creep up on you, and I hold these moments really close to me," she said.
"[The draw] was a very steep hill. Coming into the tournament, I knew that the competition was super strong and my draw was quite tough.
"Every match was just a different set of obstacles. So I'm really, really proud. I think I encountered my fair share of obstacles this week.
"I think I ended the tournament in better shape than I started. Each match I kept improving and kept learning things about myself.
"So [it] definitely gives me a lot of confidence, and it's just really nice to see all the things that I have been working on off court or during training being implemented in matches."
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Pegula, meanwhile, suggested the rain delay had a significant impact on her performance.
"Definitely felt like two different matches. I think it kind of was," she said. "I was playing much better yesterday, for whatever reason, than I was today.
"And I think she was playing better today than she was yesterday. It just kind of flip-flopped, which is part of it."
On Eala's breakthrough, Pegula added: "She's a great ball striker, great player, great competitor. This year it seems like she's finding more consistency with her results. She's beaten quite a few top players this year, including myself.
"She's tricky to play against. She's a lefty, she hits the ball well, she kind of baits you with her lefty serve.
"I've seen her in the gym a lot - I think she's trying to get stronger and move a little bit better, and that's stuff that's probably just going to come with time.
"It's so refreshing and nice to see how well she's handled all of the fandom and stardom that's come with her being from the Philippines and how they've really embraced her.
"It's crazy how she deals with it every single week, which just shows her maturity as a player and as a person.
"I have a lot of respect for her, and I like her a lot. I think she's a really nice girl. It's cool to see what she's brought to the women's game."
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