Alex Eala‘s US Open 2026 success came with an unexpected twist, as her uncle, former Philippine Sports Commission chair Noli Eala, revealed the tennis sensation was supposed to attend a wedding had she lost her second-round match.
Noli said on Friday, September 4 that Alex was supposed to fly to Seattle to attend a wedding of one of their nieces “this weekend,” where she was set to serve as a bridesmaid while her parents were the principal sponsors.
“If she had lost, Alex would have flown straight out to Seattle,” he shared on X (formerly Twitter).
“But because of her [second] round victory, Alex has to stay on and miss the wedding,” Noli added.
He then said that the Ealas decided to fly to New York City instead to show their support for Alex, who beat Ukraine’s Oleksandra Oliynykova at the US Open on Thursday, September 3 (Philippine Time).
The Filipina ace will now face the winner of the match between American Iva Jovic and British qualifier Francesca Jones in the third round of the tennis tournament.
“So now, the Ealas are flying in to NY [New York] after the wedding to watch her instead. All good. All in for Alex. Let’s celebrate all of these priceless moments,” Noli said.
Here’s the BIG reveal.
The EALAs are celebrating a wedding this weekend in Seattle of one of our nieces. The parents of Alex are principal sponsors while Alex is suppose to be a bridesmaid along with my daughter, Lexie. If she had lost, Alex would have flown straight out to…
— Noli Eala (@NoliEala) September 4, 2026
Noli’s post garnered 2,800 likes, 99 reposts and around 18 replies on X.
“Cool post-wedding activity. Hopefully, Alex wins her next match, also for more celebration,” an X user commented.
“Alex will push for a win in the [third] round as a wedding gift to the couple,” another wrote .
“Best wishes to your niece! And good luck to Alex! Let’s go!” a different X user commented, accompanied by a Philippine flag emoji.
“Ginuhit na talaga ng tadhana! Best wishes na lang kay pinsan. She’s going all the way for the [trophy emoji] now!” another Pinoy wrote.
Alex has been making waves in New York as Filipinos in the area and from other states flock to the Big Apple to watch her matches for the US Open.
A male fan previously went viral for bringing Filipino culture in the stateside by dancing “Otso Otso,” with choreography that some described as the “Pinoy version of twerking.”
ALSO READ: ‘Pinoy version of twerking’: Filipino fan’s ‘Otso Otso’ dance during Alex Eala match goes viral
The Pinay ace is the highest-seeded Filipina in Grand Slam history.
Alex’s win over No. 14 seed Clara Tauson at the 2025 US Open marked the first Grand Slam main-draw victory by a Filipino player.
