Alex Eala storms back from Set 2 hole, dethrones Leylah Fernandez en route to DC Open QFs

Alex Eala took down a defending champion for the second straight tournament, dethroning Leylah Fernandez, 6-2, 7-6(1), to book her place in the quarterfinals of the Mubadala DC Open early Thursday (Philippine time).

The Filipina tennis sensation overcame a huge 5-1 deficit in Set 2 to eliminate the reigning DC Open champion, adding another massive win to her growing list of achievements after also ousting defending Wimbledon champion Iga Swiatek in the third round of the biggest grass court event.

Coming back from 5-1 down in the second 😤

Alex Eala defeats defending champion Fernandez 6-2, 7-6(1)!#MubadalaDCOpen pic.twitter.com/O0vvg9RAzB

— wta (@WTA) July 29, 2026

By sending Fernandez packing, Eala advanced to the quarterfinals where she awaits her next opponent between second-seeded Elina Svitolina and Polina Kudermetova.

"I think I had definitely some tough moments in that match and credits to Leila. She put me in some really tough position," Eala said in the post-game interview.

"So, I think I'm super proud of how I fought, and how I stayed in there."

After a lopsided Set 1 win, Eala picked up where she left off and secured the opening game in Set 2.

But Fernandez, the seventh-seeded player in the tournament, displayed her championship poise and won the next five games to clinch the set point, 5-1.

Eala could have easily folded at that point, but the Philippine bet did the opposite. In a huge turn of events, the 21-year-old Pinay stunned Fernandez and seized the next five games, including the 9th and 10th games that she both closed out with forehand winners, to pick up the match point at 6-5.

Fernandez, though, swept Eala in the following game to force a tiebreak and stay alive.

Eala opened the tiebreaker with a 3-0 rampage before she punished Fernandez with her smart plays that helped her capture the match point at 5-1.

She capped the victory in style, firing two consecutive forehand winners to eliminate Fernandez and complete another upset of a defending champion.

"I know that she was playing a little better and maybe I had my level dropped a little bit. I think those are very tricky moments when you know your level's dropped, and you want to do better, but things just, for one reason or another, aren't coming out," Eala added.

"I think patience was key there, and just trying to work it out, and have a strong mentality in terms of trying to find solutions."

Eala opened her DC Open campaign with a comeback victory in the Round of 32, eking out a 4-6, 6-4, 6-1 win over reigning Olympic and Asian Games gold medalist Zheng Qinwen of China.

Alex Eala's Season recap (singles)

Grass-court swing

• Wimbledon (Grand Slam) — Round of 16
• Bad Homburg Open (WTA 500) — Round of 32
• Berlin Tennis Open (WTA 500) — Semifinals
• HSBC Championships (WTA 500) — Round of 16
• Birmingham Open (WTA 125) — Champion

Clay-court swing

• French Open (Grand Slam) — Round of 128
• Italian Open (WTA 1000) — Round of 32
• Madrid Open (WTA 1000) — Round of 64
• Stuttgart Open (WTA 500) — Round of 32
• Linz Open (WTA 500) — Round of 16

Sunshine Swing

• Miami Open (WTA 1000) — Round of 16
• Indian Wells Open (WTA 1000) — Round of 16

Middle East Swing

• Dubai Tennis Championships (WTA 1000) — Quarterfinals
• Qatar Open (WTA 1000) — Round of 64
• Abu Dhabi Open (WTA 500) — Quarterfinals

Philippine Women’s Open (WTA 125) — Quarterfinals

Australian Swing

• Australian Open (Grand Slam) — Round of 128
• ASB Classic (WTA 250) — Semifinals

—JMB, GMA News