Alex Eala’s brilliant form over the summer months has been rewarded with her very first WTA title at the Washington Open.
The Filipina star has been quite brilliant since the grass court season, where she won the Birmingham Open, reached the semi finals of the Berlin Open, and defeated Iga Swiatek en route to the fourth round of Wimbledon.
She continued that blistering form at the Washington Open, where she beat the likes of Jessica Pegula, Naomi Osaka, and Elina Svitolina to win the title.
Eala has made a name for herself by become somewhat of a giant killer on the WTA Tour, and Andy Roddick thinks he knows why.
Roddick believes Eala’s unorthodox style of play has become a real struggle for some of the best players on the WTA Tour.
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Speaking on Served, the American said: “She makes them uncomfortable. They have to be annoyed because they never get the same shot at the same speed and the same spot. She is very good at switching directions.
“All they want to do is step up, especially against someone who they feel they might have more power than and doesn’t serve big, but she is so good at redirecting off of pace. She has a real talent for that.”
Eala has picked up victories against the likes of Elena Rybakina, Iga Swiatek, Svitolina, Pegula, Osaka, and Leylah Fernandez over the last few months, and Roddick is expecting her to kick on even further.
Alex Eala’s victories over top 10 players
- Madison Keys – 2025 Miami Open
- Iga Swiatek – 2025 Miami Open
- Jasmine Paolini – 2026 Dubai Tennis Championships
- Coco Gauff – 2026 Indian Wells
- Elena Rybakina – 2026 Berlin Open
- Elina Svitolina – 2026 Berlin Open
- Iga Swiatek – 2026 Wimbledon
- Elina Svitolina – 2026 Washington Open
- Jessica Pegula – 2026 Washington Open
“It’s her first title,” he added. “I think a lot of the conversation rightly or wrongly after Miami last year was whether it was a fun story or is this going to be a fun story for a lot longer. It’s the latter.
“A lot of times when someone goes and wins something from a low ranking or has a big result, you go 12 months later once that result falls off, what’s the ranking going to be. That’s the true litmus test. It’s not this overinflated one massive result thing.”
Roddick believes Eala has all the tools to be one of the best players on the WTA Tour and she has proved that with her recent form, particularly at the Washington Open.
“Eala is the real deal. She is not scared to play the big players,” said Roddick. “And right back off of a good Wimbledon result, straight back into it. I thought she was fantastic.
“I don’t even think it’s a one time thing where you are surprised. She is now entering the phase where you are not judging a singular performance where you are saying that’s exciting because that’s the ceiling.
“She is now in the consistency game where you are expecting her to be pretty good all the time. It’s now, can you do it every week? That’s when you start talking about a top 10 player. Fourth round Wimbledon, win Washington, quarter finals in Canada, round of 16 here, quarter-finals here, semi-finals.
“Then you are in the conversation as a consistent contender and it’s not they are dangerous on a hard court and the next three months is a write off, she is entering this conversation where she is pretty good all the time.
“Her winning a title is not surprising to anyone, it’s now almost surprising she hasn’t won one because her quality has been so good so often. She is just not scared to go against the top players.
“For some reason what she does with switching directions and accepting pace and pinning people in corners, she is a name nobody wants to see early in a draw as a top player.”
Eala next heads to the Canadian Open, where she is looking for her first-ever main draw victory. She will play Alycia Parks in the second round of the Masters event, after receiving a first round bye thanks to her ranking.
