Manila: Tennis player Alexandra Eala leads the Philippine Sportswriters Association (PSA) monthly achievers for March. The 19-year-old, playing as a wild card, made it to the semifinal round of the WTA1000 Miami Open in Florida in the United States. On her way to the semis, the No. 140-ranked Filipina eliminated former French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko in the second round, No. 5 and reigning Australian Open champion Madison Keys in the third round, and No. 2 and five-time Grand Slam champion Iga Swiatek in the quarterfinals.
According to Philippines News Agency, despite her loss to fourth seed American Jessica Pegula in the semifinal round, Eala became the first Filipina in the Open era to beat a player in the WTA Top 5. She is also the first Filipino woman to break into the Top 100, reaching a career-high No. 75 world ranking.
Other achievers were Rubilen Amit in billiards, Melvin Jerusalem in boxing, Aidric Chan in golf, and TNT in basketball. Reigning world 9-ball titlist Amit won two tournaments in Las Vegas, securing victories over Russian Kristina Tkach and Chinese Han Yu. Jerusalem defended his WBC world minimum weight belt with a unanimous decision over Japanese rival Yudai Shigeoka in Japan, retaining his spot alongside IBF strawweight kingpin Pedro Taduran.
Rookie pro Chan dominated the Lexus Challenge in the Asian Development Tour in Vietnam, claiming the winner’s purse after a final round of four-under-par 67. Meanwhile, TNT secured the Commissioner’s Cup title, defeating Barangay Ginebra in a dramatic Game 7 that went into overtime. Guard Rey Nambatac was named Finals MVP.
