By KRISTEL SATUMBAGA Her fairy tale run at the 2025 Miami Open may have ended, but the aspirations to achieve more continue for 19-year-ol Filipina tennis sensation Alex Eala. In fact, world No. 4 Jessica Pegula – the very same opponent that beat her in the semifinals of the said Women’s Tennis Association (WTA1000) event -- is sure of that. “I mean, obviously she’s beaten a lot of top players this week. I don’t really think she needs me to tell her that she’s a great player, that we’re not gonna see her, but we definitely are. She proved that tonight. That was really tough,” said Pegula moments after her hard-earned 7-6 (3), 5-7, 6-3 victory over Eala early Friday, March 28. Eala definitely pushed Pegula to the max in that two hour, 26-minute battle. Just when the American was getting the momentum, there went the Filipina testing her mettle once more. In the end, Pegula’s experience prevailed, but the 31-year-old reigning US Open finalist lauded Eala’s spirited challenge. “I was so, so tired. I mean, she’s really good. Really good tennis player,” said Pegula, who arranged a finals match against world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka. From No. 140 in the world prior to the tournament, Eala is expected to debut inside the Top 100 with a live ranking at No. 75. This would give her more opportunities to compete in top-tier WTA tournaments, and, if she maintains it, a spot in the main draw of this year’s Grand Slams, including the French Open slated on May 25. Before coming to Miami as a wild card entry, Eala was coming off a string of appearances in WTA125 and WTA250 events this year. She has five singles titles, though, in International Tennis Federation (ITF) level events: one in a W15 tournament, three in W125, and one in a W100 event. She has been attempting to break into the main draw of the Grand Slams by playing in the qualifying rounds since 2023, but always fell short, including at last January’s Australian Open, where she lost her first qualifying round match. Not the next time around, perhaps.