Eala stuns Osaka to reach Washington final against Pegula

WASHINGTON: Alexandra Eala continued her impressive breakthrough season by upsetting third seed Naomi Osaka 6-4 6-2 on Saturday to reach the final of the Mubadala DC Open in Washington.

The 21-year-old Filipino recovered from an evenly contested opening set, breaking Osaka at 4-4 before serving out the set to love. Eala carried the momentum into the second set, racing to a 2-0 lead before securing another break for a 5-2 advantage and wrapping up victory in 76 minutes.

The win sends Eala into the biggest WTA final of her career, where she will face top seed Jessica Pegula.

Pegula overcame a slow start to beat Russia’s fourth seed Diana Shnaider 7-5 6-4 after rallying from 5-2 down in the opening set.

The American won five consecutive games to claim the first set before taking control of the second, winning 10 of 12 games across the two sets to open a 5-2 lead. Shnaider broke serve as Pegula attempted to close out the match, but the American sealed victory two games later.

Pegula is chasing her third title of the season and the 12th of her career. A victory would also give her a second Washington title after lifting the trophy in 2019.

The American won the pair’s only previous meeting, defeating Eala in the semifinals of the 2025 Miami Open.