MANILA, Philippines — Filipino tennis star Alex Eala may have fallen short in her bid to reach the US Open fourth round, but her impressive run in Flushing Meadows still yielded a sizable payout of $310,000, or approximately P19.4 million.
Eala’s campaign came to an agonizing close at the Arthur Ashe Stadium after a grueling three-set battle against her close friend and rival, world No. 14 Iva Jovic of the United States.
Despite forcing a decider and taking a 4-2 lead in the third frame, Eala couldn't hold off Jovic's late surge, falling 5-7, 6-3, 5-7 in a high-caliber thriller lasting three hours and three minutes.
While the defeat denied Eala the chance to become the first Southeast Asian player to reach the US Open fourth round since Thailand’s Tamarine Tanasugarn in 2003, the 19-year-old Filipina still walked away with a significant prize package for her performance.
Her P19.4 million total earnings were anchored by a $290,000 payout for reaching the singles third round, built on dominant early victories over American qualifier Mary Stoiana (6-1, 6-2) and world No. 46 Oleksandra Oliynykova (6-1, 6-4).
On top of her singles prize money, Eala added a $20,000 split for competing in the mixed doubles first round alongside Canadian star Felix Auger-Aliassime. TMT
