Introduction
Alexandra "Alex" Maniego Eala (born 23 May 2005) is a Filipino tennis player.
Eala has a career high ITF junior combined ranking of 4 achieved on 3 February 2020. Eala is from a sporting family. Her mother Rizza is a 1985 Southeast Asian Games bronze medalist in the 100-meter backstroke and also the current Chief financial officer of Globe Telecom. Her brother Michael Francis II is also among the young rising stars in tennis.
Alexandra Eala was named the 2019 Milo Junior Athlete of the Year in the San Miguel Corp.-Philippine Sportswriters Association (PSA) Annual Awards Night.
Junior career
Eala is currently 4th ranking junior. She entered the prestigious Les Petit As 14-and-under tournament in 2018 at the age of 12 and won the finals against Linda Nosková. Eala made her junior Grand Slam debut at the 2019 US Open. She has an impressive run that qualified from qualifying competition, eventually losing to second round match with Mai Napatt Nirundorn.
Eala made history with her maiden juniors Grand Slam title with Indonesian partner Priska Madelyn Nugroho in the 2020 Australian Open juniors doubles tournament on Friday, January 31 in Melbourne Park. Eala and Nugroho swept the European duo of Slovenia's Ziva Falkner and Britain's Matilda Mutavdzic, 6–1, 6–2, to win the championship. Both Eala and Nugroho redeemed themselves from their singles exit in the 3rd round.
Junior Grand Slam finals
Doubles: 1 (1 titles)
| Result | Date | Tournament | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Win | 2020 | Australian Open | Hard | Priska Madelyn Nugroho | Živa Falkner Matilda Mutavdzic |
6–1, 6–2 |
ITF Junior Finals
| Grand Slam |
| Category GA |
| Category G1 |
| Category G2 |
| Category G3 |
| Category G4 |
| Category G5 |
Singles (3–5)
| Outcome | No. | Date | Tournament | Surface | Opponent | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Runner–up | 1. | 1 July 2018 | Jakarta, Indonesia | Hard | Priska Madelyn Nugroho | 2–6, 6–4, 1–6 |
| Winner | 2. | 28 October 2018 | Alicante, Spain | Clay | Jessica Bouzas Maneiro | 6–2, 6–3 |
| Winner | 3. | 18 November 2018 | Makati City, Philippines | Clay | Dasha Plekhanova | 6–4, 6–2 |
| Runner–up | 4. | 25 November 2018 | Manila, Philippines | Clay | Janice Tjen | 3–6, 6–2, 5-7 |
| Runner–up | 5. | 19 January 2019 | New Delhi, India | Hard | Federica Sacco | 5–7, 3–6 |
| Runner–up | 6. | 26 January 2019 | Kolkata, India | Clay | Mai Napatt Nirundorn | 6–2, 3–6, 2–6 |
| Winner | 7. | 22 September 2019 | Cape Town, South Africa | Hard | Linda Fruhvirtova | 6–3, 6–3 |
| Runner–up | 8. | 20 October 2019 | Osaka, Japan | Hard | Diane Parry | 2–6, 4–6 |
Doubles (3–2)
| Outcome | No. | Date | Tournament | Surface | Partner | Opponents in the final | Score in the final |
| Winner | 1. | 27 October 2018 | Alicante, Spain | Clay | Joelle Lilly Sophie Steur | Maria Dzemeshkevich Lily Hutchings |
6–2, 6–2 |
| Runner–up | 2. | 16 June 2019 | Offenbach, Germany | Clay | Annerly Poulos | Selena Janicijevic CaroleMonnet |
4–6, 2–6 |
| Runner–up | 3. | 13 September 2019 | Cape Town, South Africa | Hard | Elvina Kalieva | Weronika Baszak Matilda Mutavdzic |
3–6, 6–4, [3–10] |
| Winner | 4. | 15 December 2019 | Plantation, USA | Clay | Evialina Laskevich | Jada Bui Melodie Collard |
6–3, 6–7, [10-5] |
| Winner | 5. | 31 January 2020 | Australian Open, Melbourne | Hard | Priska Madelyn Nugroho | Živa Falkner Matilda Mutavdzic |
6–1, 6–2 |