Earlier this year, Colombian tennis star Camila Osorio defeated Alexandra Eala at the inaugural Philippine Women’s Open.
The pair met in the quarter-finals of the WTA 125k event, and Osorio secured a 6-4, 6-4 victory over her WTA rival.
Does anybody else even come close to Alex Eala’s popularity right now?
Osorio went on to win the title in the Philippines, beating Solana Sierra in the semi-finals and Donna Vekic in the final.
Two months on from her participation in the event, Osorio has reflected on her experience of playing against Alex Eala, while discussing how the Filipino tennis fans at the event compare to those in her home nation of Colombia.
Camila Osorio says Alex Eala’s Filipino tennis fans are similar to Colombian tennis fans
“Well, something that I’m super, super happy and like honoured that it was like to play in Philippines in Manila against someone like Alex,” Osorio said during her pre-tournament press conference at the Copa Colsanitas Open in Bogota, as reported by Cancha Central.
“First, she’s amazing, an amazing person, an amazing player.
“So it was a great, a great experience for me to play in front of her people, and everything. I enjoyed it so much because they were so respectful too.
“So it was like, really, really interesting for me at least, because, for example, when I’m in Colombia, here, everyone is cheering for me.
“There, I felt all the opposite— you know, like, I felt that people were like all the way for her, and like, shooting a little bit for me, but yeah, no, like, I feel it was completely different. And, but, just like, amazing too.
“I don’t know, it’s just like they’re similar to us, to the Colombians, because they’re very passionate.
“So when they’re going for someone, they’re really going for that person. So yeah, that’s really similar to us.
“But I really enjoyed it, and obviously, when you’re here, I also try to take it on my advantage to enjoy the people, to enjoy the crowd.
“So I’m really happy to be back, really happy to experience this again. I’m going to try and enjoy. I don’t know what’s going to happen at the end, but I’m going to do my best to perform well here.”
Osorio is set to begin her Copa Colsanitas campaign on Tuesday and she faces American Carolina Dolehide in her opening match.
If Osorio, seeded third, were to defeat Dolehide, she would play Iren Burillo or Jazmin Ortenzi in the round of 16.
As for Alex Eala, the Filipina is taking a week away from competitive play before returning to the court at the Linz Open in Austria.
What is the best win of Alexandra Eala’s career so far? 🤔
Iga Swiatek in Miami, Clara Tauson at the US Open, Jasmine Paolini in Dubai, or a different match?
Following her participation in Austria, the 20-year-old will travel to Germany for the Stuttgart Open – where she is entered into the qualifying bracket.
Who are Alex Eala’s main rivals in Linz?
After falling 16 places to world number 45, Alex Eala will hope to bounce back quickly at the Linz Open next week.
The Filipina will contend for the Linz title among a plethora of talented WTA stars, including two-time Grand Slam singles champion Barbora Krejcikova, and recent Abu Dhabi champion Sara Bejlek.
Defending champion Ekaterina Alexandrova is also slated to make her return, while British stars Emma Raducanu and Katie Boulter are also on the player entry list.
Other notable names include Clara Tauson – whom Eala beat at the 2025 US Open – and 2023 Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova.
Former world number one Karolina Pliskova is also set to compete in Austria, as is Emma Navarro and 2017 French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko.
