Alex Eala opens US Open campaign against Mary Stoiana

The opening match

Alex Eala, the 21-year-old tennis player from the Philippines, was scheduled to begin her 2026 US Open singles campaign against American qualifier Mary Stoiana at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Flushing Meadows, Queens, New York.

The sources differ on the timing and some details. The Guardian reported the match was set for Tuesday night at the 14,053-seat Louis Armstrong Stadium. INQUIRER.net and the Daily Tribune both gave the local Philippine time, Wednesday morning, with the Daily Tribune specifying 8:40 a.m. Manila time.

The Daily Tribune also described Eala as seeded No. 17 and referred to the venue as "Lance Armstrong Stadium", while INQUIRER.net, Vogue and the Guardian name it Louis Armstrong Stadium. The outcome of the match is not reported in any of the sources.

Sponsored

Flight delayed?ManilaCheck your claim

A year of upsets

Eala's only previous main-draw win at the US Open came last year, when she beat then world No. 14 Carla Tauson 6-3, 2-6, 7-6(11) in the first round. "I remember that I was down 5-1 in the third set and it was a very tough comeback for me," she said at a pre-tournament press conference this year.

According to the Daily Tribune, her breakthrough came at the Miami Open last year, where she beat Grand Slam champions Jelena Ostapenko, Madison Keys and Iga Swiatek on her way to the semifinals. She reached another semifinal at the Berlin Tennis Open last June after knocking out world No. 2 Elena Rybakina and world No. 10 Elina Svitolina.

She won her first WTA Tour title last month at the tournament in Washington, called the Washington Open by the Daily Tribune and the DC Open by the Guardian. Her run included wins over Qinwen Zheng, Leylah Fernandez, Svitolina, four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka and, in the final, world No. 3 Jessica Pegula.

Crowds, earnings and background

Vogue reported that at the Canadian Open in Toronto earlier this month, Eala drew sold-out crowds of more than 10,000 for each of her night matches, including a doubles appearance with Venus Williams. The Guardian said resale ticket prices for her US Open opener doubled to nearly $400 after the schedule was announced.

The Guardian also reported that Forbes estimates her off-court earnings over the past year at more than $5m, alongside $1.7m in prize money, and that her agent predicts she will be the world's second-highest-paid female athlete by 2027. The Philippine president hosted a reception for her and called for a national celebration after her first tour-level title.

Eala was born and raised in Quezon City, just outside Manila. Vogue reported that her late grandfather Roberto, a club player with no formal coaching background, introduced her to tennis at age three, and that she won the 2022 US Open girls' singles title to become her country's first Grand Slam champion.

"At the forefront of everything is gratitude," Eala told reporters. "I'm very grateful for the support that my fans give me."