Alexandra Eala advanced to the quarterfinals of the Philippine Women’s Open after a straight-sets victory over Himeno Sakatsume.
Eala had a good start to the week with a first-round win over Alina Alexejewna Tscharajewa, playing in front of a supportive home crowd in Manila.
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The rising Filipino star also had a scare early in her opening match, appearing to struggle physically before recovering to advance in three sets. She called another medical timeout during the second round, but advanced to reach the final eight, where she will next face either Yuliia Starodubtseva or Yafan Wang.
Sakatsume hadn’t won consecutive matches since March 2023 and was just 2-14 in the main draws for this season before this one. Her first-round opponent, Kyoka Okamura, withdrew late in the match after suffering from cramps.
Alex Eala talks about his progress at the Philippine Open
Photo by Ted ALJIBE / AFP via Getty Images
Eala later admitted she was dealing with pain throughout the match, but was relieved by how quickly things improved after her medical timeout.
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“It wasn’t easy today,” she said. “Even though I won (6-4) the first set, I didn’t feel very comfortable there.”
“At first I didn’t want to use painkillers because it usually made me feel weird, but I decided when my physical therapist came on the field; he really helped me decide what I should do and they just wanted to be careful.
Who Alex Eala could face in the Philippine Women’s Open final
If Eala manages to reach her third WTA final, she could meet one of four possible opponents.
One option is Donna Vekic, a former Wimbledon semifinalist who Eala recently beat at the ASB Classic.
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There is also Lin Zhu, who upset Mirra Andreeva and Emma Raducanu at the 2025 Ningbo Open. Zhu has already reached her career peak of world number 31.
Next come Tatiana Prozorova and Sofia Costoulas, ranked 174th and 143rd respectively. Prozorova eliminated top seed Tatjana Maria in the round of 16.
A victory in Manila would earn Eala 125 WTA points, which could lift her to 41st in the world, just behind American Ann Li.
