By Agence Frace-Presse

Filipina tennis sensation Alex Eala scored the biggest victory of her career on Tuesday, defeating world No. 3 Jessica Pegula of the United States to claim the crown in the 2026 Mubadala DC Open.

It is a first WTA singles crown for the 21-year-old, who capped a superb campaign with a remarkable 4-6, 6-4, 6-0 triumph in the final.

She is the first player from the Philippines to win a WTA championship.

In making it to the final, Eala dethroned defending champion Leylah Fernandez in the second round before ousting world no. 10 Elina Svitolina of Ukraine in the last eight. She then marched past former world No. 1 Naomi Osaka to reach the championship round.

“Before the final yesterday, I got so many messages, sweet messages from my family and my friends who are on tour, wherever else in the world. I thought to myself, I feel so much love,” Eala said afterward.

“So standing here in the middle of all this love, my first chance at a title, knowing that it won’t be my last, and already having achieved this feat and this milestone for my career, I knew that whatever would have happened after this match, it would have already been a win for me,” she added.

Matched up against the tournament’s top seed in Pegula, Eala rose to the occasion in magnificent fashion, showcasing the nifty returns and aggression that has become her trademark.

The Filipina had to battle back from a set down, with the finalists also dealing with a lengthy rain delay that forced the final to be rescheduled for Tuesday midnight (Manila time).

Pegula was down a break in the opening set, 3-4, and faced two break points on her serve before mounting a gutsy comeback. An Eala error and an ace forced a deuce, before Pegula ripped a forehand winner and Eala sent her own shot long to allow the American to knot the count at 4-4.

Pegula went on to break Eala and then held to love to take the opener.

The players exchanged holds in the first three games of the second set before play was suspended due to rain, with Pegula set to serve.

When action resumed several hours later, Eala seized the momentum. The players exchanged holds until the ninth game, with Eala holding to love for a 5-4 advantage as Pegula committed a series of errors.

The American’s miscues continued in the tenth game, with Pegula sending a forehand long to give Eala a breakpoint. Another errant shot by Pegula allowed Eala to force a decider — where the Filipina rising star simply dominated.

Eala overpowered Pegula in the third set, showcasing a solid service game and a variety of winners to keep the American off balance.

After the match, Eala was all praises for Pegula.

“You’ve had an amazing season, it’s always a pleasure to share the court with you,” she said. “I definitely learned so, so much.”

This is Eala’s second WTA final, having lost in heartbreaking fashion last year at Eastbourne when she fell to Maya Joint in three sets.

This time around she took care of business against Pegula, who had beaten her in the semifinals of the Miami Open last year — ending what had been her breakout campaign.

With the result, Eala is projected to rise to a career-high No. 20 in the WTA rankings.

For Pegula, the loss denied her a 12th career title and a third this season.