Alexandra Eala takes down Iga Swiatek to reach Miami semis

Wild card Alexandra Eala has gone from virtual unknown to a 19-year-old upset queen in the span of a week.

She recorded her biggest upset Wednesday with a 6-2, 7-5 victory over second-seeded Iga Swiatek of Poland to reach the semifinals of the Miami Open. The 140th-ranked Eala outplayed the five-time Grand Slam champion after earlier dismissing Australian Open champion Madison Keys from the event.

The Filipino converted 8 of 10 break points in the quarterfinal match while notching the biggest win of her short career. Swiatek, meanwhile, had 32 unforced errors.

"My coach told me to run and go for every ball and take all the opportunities I can because a five-time Grand Slam championship is not going to give you the win," Eala said in an on-court interview.

After knocking out Swiatek, a picture was circulating on social media from when Eala graduated from the Rafael Nadal Academy on the island of Mallorca in Spain in 2023.

To Eala's right was Nadal. To her left was Swiatek.

In 2023 Alexandra Eala graduated from The Rafa Nadal Academy and had her picture taken next to Rafa and Iga.

2 years later she's playing Iga Swiatek at the Miami Open in the biggest match of her life.

Love this. pic.twitter.com/F18uosWr3Z

— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) March 26, 2025

"Circumstances have changed," Eala said in a surreal tone. "I'm so happy and blessed to be able to compete with such a player on this stage."

Eala will face either fourth-seeded Jessica Pegula or unseeded Brit Emma Raducanu in the semis. Those two women meet later Wednesday.

--Field Level Media