US Open spotlight on Southeast Asian tennis as Alex Eala, Indonesia's Janice Tjen make history

Southeast Asian pride echoed at the US Open as Alex Eala and Janice Tjen carved history with breakthrough wins that lit up Flushing Meadows.

The Filipina ace and the Indonesian standout both pulled off identical upsets over higher-ranked opponents, marking a milestone moment for the region.

Eala roared back from huge Set 3 deficit before eking out a gutsy 6-3, 2-6, 7(13)-6(11) win against world no. 14 and 14th seed Clara Tauson of Denmark while Tjen stunned world no. 25 and 24th seed Veronika Kudermetova with a 6-4, 4-6, 6-4 escape.

The victories not only sent Eala and Tjen through to the next round but also etched history for their countries while putting Southeast Asia on the tennis map.

Eala’s victory etched her name in history as the first Filipino to win a Grand Slam main draw match, while the 23-year-old Tjen brought back glory for Indonesia by becoming the nation’s first winner at that stage in 22 years.

—Bea Micaller/JMB, GMA Integrated News