Alex Eala suffers ranking slide after Miami Open run

MANILA, Philippines – Alex Eala’s stay in the world’s top 30 proved short-lived.

From a career-high No. 29, the Filipina tennis star slid 16 spots to No. 45 in the latest WTA rankings released on Monday, March 30, following her round of 16 exit in the Miami Open.

Eala incurred a loss of 270 points and fell to 1,255 points as she failed to replicate her surprise run to the semifinals in the 2025 edition of the prestigious WTA 1000 tournament. 

Needing to defend the 390 points she earned from her 2025 campaign in Miami, the 20-year-old earned just 120 points as she suffered a 6-0, 6-2 loss to Czech Republic’s Karolina Muchova in the fourth round. 

The defeat kept Eala winless against players from the Czech Republic, her record against such foes falling to 0-13. 

Eala’s 16-notch drop is her biggest since she first cracked the top 100 at about the same time a year ago. 

She can make up for those lost points, though, as Eala plunges back to action in the WTA 500 Linz Open in Austria slated from April 6 to 12.

Eala is also expected to compete in the WTA 1000 Madrid Open in Spain, where she looks to improve on her round of 64 appearance in 2025.

Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus tightened her grip on the No. 1 spot as she defended her title in Miami against the USA’s Coco Gauff, who improved to No. 3. 

Former world No. 1 Iga Swiatek of Poland slid to No. 4. – Rappler.com