Alex Eala wraps up ASB Classic stint with a semifinal finish

By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña

Alex Eala’s WTA 250 ASB Classic tournament campaign came to an end after suffering a semifinal loss to China’s Wang Xinyu, 7-5, 5-7, 4-6, on Jan. 10, 2026, in Auckland, New Zealand.

Despite staging a comeback for the ages after bucking a 0-4 start to seal a 7-5 first-set victory, Eala was handed a different fate in the last two frames after Wang showed tremendous poise under pressure, sweeping sets 2 and 3 to run away with the come-from-behind semis win.

Fresh off a morale-boosting quarterfinal win against former World No. 19 Magda Linette, the Filipina tennis ace couldn’t sustain her momentum against Wang and was undone by a string of unforced errors, followed by a heartbreaking missed opportunity to close out the match after taking a 40-30 match point in the eighth game of the second set.

The 20-year-old WTA phenom kicked off the semifinal showdown showing grit and resilience after erasing Wang’s early double-break lead, 4-0.

After tasting her first service hold of the game to get on board, 5-1, Eala pulled off a stunning effort to climb back as she countered with a demoralizing 4-0 run to equalize the opener at 5-all.

It was then all Eala as the Filipina blanked Wang in the last two games, scoring a much-needed service hold to take a 6-5 cushion before breaking the Chinese to bag the impressive 1-0 lead.

The following set mirrored the first half of action during the opener as Wang once again stormed to a comfortable 3-1 lead.

However, Eala followed the script to inch closer through a series of service breaks and even moved a point away from clinching the game when she led 5-3, 40-30.

Eala unfortunately fumbled her chance to seal the deal, allowing Wang to generate more room for a topspin backhand to force a deuce.

That moment proved to be the jolt of electricity Wang needed to stay composed as she stole the set away from Eala en route to a 7-5 second-set win to tie the semis clash at 1-all.

Wang smelled blood in the third and final set and cruised to early domination with a 4-0 lead but had to endure another fightback from Eala, who managed to pull within 5-4.

When every Filipino hopeful thought that Eala could replicate her first-set magic, Wang saw enough and dealt the exclamation point with a service hold to cap off the grueling three-set victory.

“It was a crazy battle from the start to the end. She’s an absolute fighter,” Wang said of Eala during her post-game interview.

“And to be honest, I feel more pressured when I’m 5-0 up. Just really happy that I took this one today. In my first-ever final.”