Camille Naredo

Filipina tennis ace Alex Eala faces Japan's Himeno Sakatsume in the WTA 125 Philippine Women’s Open Round of 16 at the Rizal Memorial Tennis Center in Manila on January 28, 2026.

Filipina tennis ace Alex Eala faces Japan's Himeno Sakatsume in the WTA 125 Philippine Women’s Open Round of 16 at the Rizal Memorial Tennis Center in Manila on January 28, 2026. Eala booked a spot in the quarterfinals after beating Sakatsume 6-4, 6-0. Jonathan Cellona, ABS-CBN News

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TENNIS

ABS-CBN News

<div><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/177287177984420260128-tennis-wta125-ph-r16-eala-sakatsume-JC0747.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" alt="Filipina tennis ace Alex Eala faces Japan&#x27;s Himeno Sakatsume in the WTA 125 Philippine Women’s Open Round of 16 at the Rizal Memorial Tennis Center in Manila on January 28, 2026. Jonathan Cellona, ABS-CBN News" width="960"/>Filipina tennis ace Alex Eala faces Japan&#x27;s Himeno Sakatsume in the WTA 125 Philippine Women’s Open Round of 16 at the Rizal Memorial Tennis Center in Manila on January 28, 2026. Jonathan Cellona, ABS-CBN News</div>MANILA (2nd UPDATE) -- Filipina tennis star Alex Eala advanced to the third round of the BNP Paribas Open in sensational fashion, scoring a hard-earned victory over Ukraine&#x27;s Dayana Yastremska in Stadium 3 at Indian Wells on Saturday (Manila time).Eala&#x27;s Indian Wells debut was a memorable one, as she went the distance with Yastremska before taking a 7-5, 4-6, 7-5 victory after two hours and 43 minutes.&quot;I told myself to keep fighting. I was still in the match, so … I really had to dig deep for that one,&quot; the 20-year-old said afterward. &quot;She played really well, in my opinion. I had to really go after all the balls and trust my gut. I think mental fortitude was a big part of today&#x27;s game.&quot;A crowd full of her supporters urged Eala on in the deciding set, when she was broken to love to fall behind 4-5. The veteran Yastremska had a chance to serve for the match, but the Ukrainian was betrayed by her serve with a couple of double faults allowing Eala to force a 5-5 deadlock.Eala proceeded to hold Yastremska to love in the next game to take control, 6-5, before the protagonists engaged in a prolonged 12th game with neither giving an inch.Yastremska showed great grit in saving three match points, and even reached a third break point off an ace. But she committed back-to-back double faults -- her 14th and 15th -- to hand Eala a fourth match point.This time Eala held on, as another error by Yastremska wrapped up the match in the Filipina&#x27;s favor.&quot;I think that this match could have gone either way. I don&#x27;t think there was a huge shift in momentum at any point,&quot; Eala noted. &quot;I tried to remind myself I was still in the game, and just kept there, stayed there, and kept fighting.&quot;Eala, seeded 31st in the tournament, will advance to play American star Coco Gauff in the third round. Gauff, the fourth seed, took her place in the third round after a 6-3, 7-6 (7-5) win over Kamilla Rakhimova in the second round.It will be a rematch of their showdown in the quarterfinals of the Dubai Tennis Championships last month, which Gauff won handily, 6-0, 6-2.<div><a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/sports/othersports/2026/2/20/alex-eala-bows-out-of-dubai-championships-in-loss-to-gauff-0031">READ: Alex Eala bows out of Dubai Championships in loss to Coco Gauff</a></div>Eala needed 61 minutes to claim the first set against Yastremska, as she squandered three set points in the ninth game and allowed her opponent to work her way back in the contest. But unforced errors hounded Yastremska in the final two games, giving Eala the advantage.Yastremska gained her rhythm in the second set, peppering Eala with winners to surge to a 4-1 advantage. Eala broke and then held to love to get back into the set, 4-3, but Yastremska recovered and found her target with her forehand to send the match to a decider.Both players traded holds in the third set until Yastremska seemingly broke through in the ninth game, only to be broken herself in the tenth.From there, Eala held her nerve to notch yet another milestone victory. <div> </div><div> </div>

Filipina tennis star Alex Eala is headed to the third round at Indian Wells after a sensational victory over Ukraine's Dayana Yastremska on Saturday (Manila time).

Filipina tennis star Alex Eala is headed to the third round at Indian Wells after a sensational victory over Ukraine's Dayana Yastremska on Saturday (Manila time).

Tennis: Alex Eala outlasts Yastremska in thriller, advances to third round in Indian Wells

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Tennis: Alex Eala outlasts Yastremska in thriller, advances to third round in Indian Wells

Camille B. Naredo,

ABS-CBN News

Published March 07, 2026 03:58 PM PHT

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Updated March 07, 2026 05:39 PM PHT

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abssports

tennis

Indian Wells

BNP Paribas Open

Alex Eala

Dayana Yastremska

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