DAZZLING in DC, Alex Eala's Mubadala Citi DC Open debut seemed like a homecoming for Filipinos in Washington.
The 21-year-old Filipina had a passionate crowd cheering her on, as she played her Round of 32 match, eventually defeating Olympic champion Qinwen Zheng of China in come-from-behind fashion.
READ: Eala completes comeback over Zheng to jumpstart DC Open Campaign
Aside from her now-signature grit in turning the match around, the atmosphere also stole the spotlight.
That should no longer come as a surprise, though.
Tournament chair Mark Ein revealed a majority of ticket inquiries were about the Filipina's schedule, and demand had been on a high level ever since her participation was confirmed.
"It's not an exaggeration… I will say, over the last month, the ticketing team says at least 80-percent, if not more, of requests in this tournament are about when is Alex Eala playing? Honestly, I think it's more, and they just didn't want to say it's more, but they're, like, virtually, all," he said.
Ein then became firsthand witness to the overwhelming support Filipinos everywhere have shown Eala.
He continued: "When you look at the amazing players here and how many great stars there are, it says something about Alex's following. Obviously, she's become an icon in the Philippines (and) worldwide. There's obviously Filipinos everywhere."
"Earlier this year, our team said, this is a phenomenon that's spreading and we should try to get Alex to come to Washington. Having her here is honestly one of the really great things that's already happened this year."
Alex feels at home
While the crowd wasn't at full capacity on Tuesday afternoon, her following had already begun making waves in the U.S. capital.
And yet, it was a bit of a shock for Eala that there would be a massive Filipino community rallying behind her in the U.S.
She told the WTA: "This is my first time competing in DC. I knew there was a Filipino community. Most of these places, I'm not really sure what to expect at this point, but I was pleasantly surprised. I think there was a great atmosphere on court today, very electric."
DC marked Eala's opener in her North American hard court swing.
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