Alexandra Eala’s Legacy Triumph in Washington. One 21-year-old Filipino, Alexandra Eala became the first women’s tennis player to win a Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) Tour-level singles title. In a high-stakes and weather-ruffled summit at the Mubadala DC Open, Eala rallied back to defeat top seed and world number three Jessica Pegula 4-6, 6-4, 6-0. The women’s final was a long one and the physical and mental toughness of both finalists was tested in the United States capital.
A week ago, rain had forced play to halt on Sunday evening and Pegula had a one-set lead after losing the first set and only 2-1 in the second set. But a revived Eala took over in a surge from there, a rejuvenated Eala dominated with a strong baseline, confident baseline power, precise shot-making and strong serve, and ten of the last thirteen games were won by the young Filipino to set up a big win in front of her own team when a big crowd that supported her and her fellow players in front of a passionate crowd. When the trophy was presented, Eala couldn’t help but feel very emotional during the emotional presentation of the trophy and thanked the crowd for the love she received for the support she got and said that this one day when she became a finalist in the first time in her career for the first time in her life and she is just beginning. Pegula, who won the Washington title in 2019, was very proud that she was the first person to win the title in the past and it was a huge achievement that stands out for her, and the support for this first time.
Taylor Fritz takes the men's draw. At the men’s championship, American player Taylor Fritz won his eleventh ATP title by beating nineteen-year-old Spanish rising star Rafael Jodar in straight sets, 7-6(2), 6-4. Fritz is working hard to be back in top form after a knee injury that sidelined him earlier in the season and relied heavily on his lethal serving repertoire. The American veteran recorded eighty-one percent of his first serve points in the match.
The first set was so tough, both players went to a tense tiebreak that Fritz could not relax to emerge victorious. The twenty-eight-year-old took a key break in the second set and then won the match in the end to win the tournament for the first time in 2026. The double-bill finals completed a very rainy tour through Washington, D.C. and both players and the tournament and the professional tennis landscape will be on a high as the tour will head into the grueling North American hardcourt swing from here on to the US Open in the coming weeks.
