Eala Dethrones Defending Champion Fernandez for Washington, DC QF

By Richard Pagliaro | Wednesday, July 29, 2026
Photo credit: Jeff Dean/Wick Photography for Mubadala DC Open

Deficits don’t deter Alexandra Eala.

Playing from behind only propels the Filipina phenom into overdrive.

Facing a 1-5 second-set deficit, Eala charged through five games in a row dethroning defending champion Leylah Fernandez 6-2, 7-6(1) to reach the Mubadala DC Open quarterfinals in her Washington, DC debut.

Eala, who deposed defending Wimbledon winner Iga Swiatek at SW19 earlier this month, raised her 2026 record to 25-17 as she chases her first title before a wildly supportive corps of Filipino fans.

“It means a lot. I think every win at this level is very meaningful for me, because end of the day, I’m playing the top of the top,” Eala said. “That’s why I come into every match with all the intention that I could possibly have.

“I come out of each match, especially if I win, you know, feeling really accomplished, yeah, because I think at this level, everybody is fighting, everybody is good. So all these wins mean a lot for me.”

In a clash of lefty shotmakers, Eala played a near flawless tiebreaker to snap Fernandez’s six-match Washington, DC winning streak.

It’s a costly loss for the Canadian, who will drop out of the Top 75 when the new WTA rankings are released.

The 28th-ranked Eala reached the Berlin semifinals last month losing to eventual-champion and Wimbledon winner Linda Noskova. Eala will play either second-seeded Elina Svitolina or qualifier Polina Kudermetova for a semifinal spot.

The Eala express raced through nine of the last 10 games roaring past Olympic gold-medal champion Zheng Qinwen 4-6, 6-4, 6-1 yesterday.

Today, Eala came out striking crisp shots and jumped all over a sloppy defending champion.

Fernandez double-faulted deep to gift the opening service break and 2-0 lead to Eala, who immediately backed up the break for 3-0 after only nine minutes of play.

Throughout the set, Eala whipped wicked crosscourt forehands, while Fernandez struggled to tame her drives.

Frequently, Fernandez was over-hitting her forehand and sometimes slapping flat backhands into the net. When Fernandez netted a forehand, her 10th forehand error of the opening set, Eala snatched a one-set lead after 29 minutes.

The 2021 US Open finalist Fernandez is a fighter and she showed it storming back with a fierce forehand strike to break for a 2-1 second-set lead. Fernandez was fired up stretching her lead to 5-1 and looked poise to force a third set.

Eala was in no mood for extended engagements.

When Fernandez served for the second set at 5-2 and again at 5-4, Eala broke and eventually took a 6-5 lead.

“I think the mindset would probably have to be or what it was was kind of I’m ready for anything,” Eala said. “You know, I’m ready to make this set longer. That’s obviously the first goal is to try to go as far in that set as I possibly could.

“But if I wasn’t able to do that, I would be ready for a third, and at the end, just take it point by point.”

In the second-set tiebreaker, Fernandez tightened up a bit botching a routine volley long then flying a forehand long to fall behind 0-3.

Netting another backhand, Fernandez leaned on her Babolat stick as if it were a cane and yelled at herself falling behind 1-5.

The Eala forehand is tough to read and a versatile shot. Eala swept an excellent short-angled forehand winner crosscourt that froze Fernandez for a fistful of match points at 6-1.

Moving the champion side-to-side, Eala flashed a forehand winner down the line closing in one hour, 53 minutes.