US Open: Jessica Pegula falls to the No. 1 seed but AAPI community comes out a winner

Alexandra Eala was a crowd pleaser in the US Open courts and at the box office.

 

Aryna Sabalenka’s bruising 7-5, 6-2 victory over Jessica Pegula in the 2026 US Open semifinals was, on paper, another masterclass in power tennis. 

For Pegula, the world No. 3, it was a frustrating roadblock against a rival who simply locked into a violent, unescapable groove on the Flushing Meadows hard courts. Pegula fought with her signature flat, pristine ball-striking, but she ultimately ran out of answers against top-seeded Sabalenka's relentless attack.

Yet, for those of us watching through the lens of representation, Pegula’s deep run in New York remains a quiet triumph. 

As a Korean American athlete who actively champions diversity through the AAPI Tennis Association, her presence at the top of the game provides a vital institutional anchor. Her background—nuanced by the intersection of race and immense family wealth—continues to redefine what an Asian American sports icon looks like in the modern era.

The Eala Effect

But if Pegula represents the established vanguard, this summer truly belonged to the seismic, culture-shifting arrival of Alexandra Eala.

The 21-year-old Filipina sensation didn’t just play tennis this summer; she turned American stadiums into home venues. Fresh off a historic breakthrough where she claimed the Washington Open title — becoming the first player from the Philippines to win a Tour-level title — Eala carried a tidal wave of diaspora energy straight into New York.

For the 4.7 million Filipinos living in the United States, Eala's matches became mandatory cultural viewing and an opportunity to assert their presence known in the community. 

During her pulsating, three-hour third-round epic against Iva Jovic on Arthur Ashe Stadium, the stands didn't feel like a standard tennis crowd. They felt like a family reunion. To the consterationation of traditional tennis fans, Every baseline winner from Eala was met with a roar of tricolor flags and the unmistakable, passionate backing of a community that has long waited to see its heritage center-stage in a major sport.

The US media, usually slow to look beyond homegrown prodigies, was forced to take notice. Mainstream giants like ESPN, Forbes, Wall Street Journal and the New York Times scrambled to cover the "Eala Effect" —t he way a young star from Quezon City could completely command the media narrative and turn a mid-tournament match into a high-stakes cultural event.

What makes Eala truly transcendental, however, is the tangible economic impact tracing her wake. According to data released by the WTA, Eala's presence has unlocked entirely new diaspora consumer markets:

• The Ticket Boom: Ticket demand spiked wildly wherever she stepped on court; in Toronto, her sessions pulled a staggering 64% increase in newly acquired ticket buyers compared to any other player on the tour.

• The Digital Footprint: Her social media footprint skyrocketed, with her Instagram following surging past 1.9 million followers as "Yala Mania" took over the internet.

• The Broadcast Surge: Viewership numbers back in the Philippines shattered previous tennis broadcast records, with millions of fans waking up at dawn to stream her matches in real-time.

View from the edge

Not since 2021 when Leylah Fernandez and Emma Raducanu played in the finals has the Asian presence been as noticeable.

This "identity-driven demand" is rewriting the commercial landscape of women's sports. Eala secured $1.7 million in on-court prize money in 2026 alone, but her corporate pull is where her market value shifts into overdrive. Forbes reports her off-court commercial earnings surpassed $5 million over the past 12 months, fueled by global powerhouses like Panasonic and Marriott alongside major Filipino brands.

Tennis executives and tournament organizers are already realizing they have an unprecedented economic engine on their hands. Client managers at IMG openly project that by 2027, Eala’s skyrocketing endorsement portfolio — with minimum deals now starting in the seven-figure range — will comfortably position her as the second-highest-paid female athlete in the world, trailing only Coco Gauff.

 "The AAPI tennis community is large but underrepresented," said Pegula, one of the cofounders of the Asian American Pacific Islander Tennis Association. "We hope to empower leaders, grow visibility, and create programming that encourages youth participation." 

Pegula may have gone further in the draw, but Eala proved that the future of tennis speaks directly to the global diaspora.

Pegula, Eala, Osaka, zheng, Tien and the other Asian and Asian American players have firmly arrived, and the media and corporate landscape — much like the sport itself — will never look the same.

Eala took to Instagram to share her feelings after her journey in New York came to an end, writing: “Live for the chase. Immense gratitude for what I’ve been through this week. US Open ‘26, a forever kind of memory.”

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news, views and chismis from an AANHPI perspective, follow me on Threads, on X, BlueSky or at the blog Views From the Edge. If you find this perspective interesting, please repost. 

US Open: Lone Asian American Jessica Pegula fights her way into semi-finals

Jessica Pegula

And then there was one. Jessica Pegula is the last Asian American in the US Open as the tournament enters its final rounds.

With the media's darling, the Philippines Alexandra Eala, eliminated earlier this week, Asian and Asian American fans turned their attention to the remaining Asian and Asian American players.

The quarterfinal stage at Flushing Meadows brought a mix of heartbreak and history for our community’s top tennis stars. While three phenomenal players saw their deep runs come to an end, Pegula kept the fire burning with a gritty, come-from-behind victory.

Here is how the action unfolded for our community's favorites:

Pegula Power: Jessica Marches On

Jessica Pegula—whose mother Kim Pegula was adopted from South Korea—showed incredible mental toughness in her quarterfinal match on Tuesday. Facing off against Emma Navarro, Pegula dropped the opening set but refused to back down. She rallied fiercely to lock in a 3-6, 6-4, 6-3 victory. 

The win secures her spot in the semifinals, which are scheduled for Thursday, September 10. Pegula will take center stage during the night session inside Arthur Ashe Stadium starting at 7 p.m. local time (ET). 

In the semi-final, Pegula will be facing a familiar opponent. A massive blockbuster showdown against top-seeded and two-time defending champion Aryna Sabalenka awaits. The two met in the 2024 US Open final, which the world No. 1 won. Sabalenka also defeated Pegula in the 2025 semifinal, but since then, the Korean American has won their last couple of meetings and views their increasingly frequent battles as a genuine rivalry.

“Yeah, I think it's fun to look at it like a rivalry. I think that that's what kind of motivates me," says Pegula. "And I think, honestly, I feel like that's what's going to motivate her. Probably that I beat her the last couple of times. I'm sure she's going to look at those couple matches and what she needs to do different.”

Zheng and Rybakina’s epic clash

Olympic champion Qinwen Zheng’s phenomenal run came to a heartbreaking end in the quarterfinals on Wednesday. 

After shocking world No. 8 Iga Świątek in the previous round, Zheng went toe-to-toe with Elena Rybakina. Zheng captured the first set with flawless baseline play, but Rybakina storm-chased back to take the match 6-3, 1-6, 4-6. 

With this win, Rybakina also claims the world No. 1 ranking. 

Ankle injury halts Osaka

Naomi Osaka’s inspiring return to the US Open spotlight was cut short in the Round of 16 on Monday. The former champion ran into a red-hot Elena Rybakina, falling 1-6, 4-6. 

Compounding the tough loss, the 28-year old Osaka was visibly hampered by a nagging ankle and foot issue during the second set, ending her 2026 New York campaign.

Osaka was visibly hampered during her Monday' match by pain in her leg — was philosophical about her loss.

"Maybe I'm just getting older, but I don't feel sad," Osaka said. "I think, also, if I reflect on my career and the things that I've been able to do, there's nothing that I regret or there's nothing that I'm sad about ... If I win another Grand Slam, it's not going to change my life."

Tien pushes a veteran to the brink

On the men's side, 20-year-old Asian American phenom Learner Tien gave fans the match of the tournament in the Round of 16. 

The Next Gen graduate, coached by the former Grand Slam champion Michael Chang, pushed veteran Karen Khachanov to the absolute limit in a grueling, physical four-hour epic. Tien ultimately ran out of gas in the final stretch, falling just short in five sets: 5-7, 6-4, 7-6, 1-6, 4-6. 

Despite the exit, Tien has shown that we'll be hearing more about him in the future. His showing at the US Open proves he belongs on the sport's biggest stages. 

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news, views and chismis from an AANHPI perspective, follow me on Threads, on X, BlueSky or at the blog Views From the Edge. If you find this perspective interesting, please repost.

US Open: Eala ousted, Pegula, Osaka, Zheng, Tien move into the round of 16

Good friends Alex Eala, right, and Iva Jovic hug after their hard-fought match at the US Open.

Asian and Asian American tennis atheletes are providing a whole lot of entertaining play. The Asian diaspora is right at the epicenter of the biggest headlines of the US Open.

In a Saturday night primetime spectacular that has already been christened the "Best Match" of the tournament, Filipino tennis sensation Alexandra Eala and her close friend, American Iva Jovic, battled to the absolute physical limit on Arthur Ashe Stadium. 

While Eala's magical role came to an end, her extraordinary effort capped off a phenomenal first week for Asian, Asian American, and Pacific Islander athletes in Flushing Meadows, alongside clutch, jaw-dropping advances by Naomi Osaka, Qinwen Zheng, Jessica Pegula and among the men, Learner Tien's surprising upsets.

Besties' Battle: Eala and Jovic in 3-hour thriller

The bond between 21-year-old Filipina star Alexandra Eala and 18-year-old American prodigy Iva Jovic was put on temporary pause under the New York lights. What followed was a breathtaking 3-hour and 4-minute baseline war of attrition that left the stadium crowd on their feet.

Jovic ultimately edged out Eala with a razor-thin 7-5, 3-6, 7-5 victory.

Eala showcased the devastating ball-striking that has made her a hero in Southeast Asia, leading 4-2 in the third set continuously threatening to break Jovic's resolve, raising the hopes of her legions of fans

Jovic, playing through bleeding scrapes on her knees, broke into tears post-match, telling the crowd she felt heartbroken to have to eliminate one of her best friends in the sport. 

At the end of the match Eala went into Jovic's side of the net to give her friend a heartfelt hug instead of the customary meeting on opposite sides of the net.

That act by Eala moved Jovic to tears during the after-match press conference. "I'm going to start crying. But it says a lot about her as a person to be able to do that after that type of match and still come over to hug me and wish me all the best... Yeah, she's incredible."

Tennis icon Monica Seles heralded the match as an instant US Open classic.

Respected sports writer Jon Wertheim also called Jovic vs Eala the best match of the US Open thus far.

"If the @usopen were the UFC, Eala and Jovic would both get fight-of-the-night cash bonuses upon repairing the locker room ….as it is, can we all agree: match of the tournament ?"

Jovic now moves on to face No. 4 seed, fellow American Coco Gauff while Eala prepares for the next WTA tourney in Singapore starting Sept. 21.

Osaka defies the odds

Two-time US Open champion Naomi Osaka continues her highly watched, deeply personal quest for another Grand Slam title. Facing a massive hurdle against Belgium’s Elise Mertens, Osaka proved that her championship mettle remains entirely intact. 

After dropping a grueling second set and staring down a dangerous 4-2 deficit in the final set, Osaka dialed in her signature heavy groundstrokes to capture a thrilling 6-3, 3-6, 7-5 win.

The Road Ahead: A visibly relieved Osaka admitted to the press she was "literally shocked" by the turnaround. Her prize? A blockbuster, highly anticipated Round of 16 showdown against Elena Rybakina.

Wen pulls off the escape of the century

Reigning Olympic Gold Medalist Qinwen Zheng looked completely down and out against American powerhouse Madison Keys. What happened next will go down in Chinese tennis lore.

After dropping the first set 1-6, Zheng found herself trapped in a seemingly insurmountable 5-0 hole in the deciding third set.

Zheng saved a match point, locked down her errors, and engineered a staggering seven-game consecutive streak to completely paralyze Keys, taking the match 1-6, 7-6 (3), 7-5. Zheng pushes forward to face World No. 8 Iga Świątek in a marquee matchup.

 Steady Pegula sails through

Rounding out the top tier of American contenders, half-Korean third seed Jessica Pegula put on a brilliant, clinical display on Louis Armstrong Stadium. 

Pegula dismantled the veteran 16th seed Sorana Cîrstea in straight sets, 6-3, 6-4, behind a dominant 68% first-serve efficiency. She moves seamlessly into the Round of 16 to take on fellow American Emma Navarro.

A surprise on the men's side

The American tennis landscape has a new reason to celebrate, and it comes in the form of 20-year-old Learner Tien, who is delivering a historic breakthrough performance at the US Open.

At 1:30 a.m., Learner Tien was able to raise his arms in victory.

By punching his ticket to the Round of 16, the 14th-seeded Irvine native has become the youngest American man to reach the fourth round at Flushing Meadows since Andy Roddick's iconic run in 2002.

Tien outlasted 17th-seed Jakub Menšík in a grueling, three-hour and 24-minute five-set marathon (6–3, 1–6, 6–7, 6–3, 6–4), ending at 1:30 a.m.

Prior to this year's tournament, Tien had never won a main-draw match at the US Open. He has now rocketed from outside the top 200 into the world's top 15.

Next up, the young American faces a massive test against former semifinalist Karen Khachanov for a spot in the quarterfinals scheduled around 7 p.m. Monday.

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US Open: Asian players advance as matches grow harder and more tense

USTA

Barangay New York showed up at the US Open to support Filipino sports hero Alex Eala.

The tennis world is witnessing a remarkable convergence of talent, culture, and representation at Flushing Meadows, as three powerhouse athletes with deep Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) roots advance into the deep end of the US Open draw.

 In a tournament that continuously showcases the global nature of modern tennis, Alexandra Eala, Naomi Osaka, and Jessica Pegula are carving out their own distinct, compelling storylines while carrying the passion of multi-ethnic communities with them into every set.

Perhaps the most gripping drama came from world No. 3 Jessica Pegula—whose mother was adopted from South Korea—in a thrilling generational battle against Filipino Canadian star Leylah Fernandez. 

Dropping the opening set 1-6 against Fernandez's blistering, aggressive angles, Korean American Pegula showed the quiet grit and tactical adaptability that defines her game. The match turned into an intense, physical chess match, with Pegula edging a high-tension second-set tiebreak before outlasting Fernandez 6-3 in the final frame to complete a dramatic comeback. 

Having overcome a fierce opponent with shared Asian heritage, Pegula moves into the fourth round (Round of 16) on September 6 to battle Romania’s No. 16 seed Sorana Cîrstea.

From left: Jessica Pegula, Naomi Osaka and Alex Eala are drawing new fans to the sport of tennis.

Alex Eala

Alexandra Eala has ignited a full-blown wave of "Eala Mania" with fans coming from as far as the Philippines and the bulk of fans coming from New York's Queens borough where a majority of the city's Filipino Americans reside..

 The 21-year-old Filipina sensation dismantled Ukraine’s Oleksandra Oliynykova in a commanding 6-1, 6-4 second-round victory, transforming Louis Armstrong Stadium into an electric celebration of Pinoy pride by waving Philippine flags, cheers of "Laban (Let's go) Alex!" and buying up tickets for Eala's matches and there has even been a sighting of the dancing Eala-saurus that first made its costumed appearance in Toronto's Canadian Open.

With every thunderous winner and composed rally, the energized crowd pushed Eala firmly into her maiden third-round appearance at a Grand Slam. With each match, Eala continues to make history. No other Southeast Asian has reached the third round of the US Open. 

She now prepares to face her close friend, America's No. 14 seed Iva Jovic, who is 2-0 against Eala in previous meetings. The two friends will take the court on September 5, with Eala looking to extend a fairytale run that has united Eala Mania with traditional tennis fans who love to cheer on the underdog.

Naomi Osaka

 

Meanwhile, two-time champion and 13th seed in the Open Naomi Osaka continues to seamlessly blend athletic resilience with cultural influence. 

The L.A.-based Japanese and Haitian icon turned heads in Arthur Ashe Stadium with a striking custom daytime kit before gritting out a hard-fought 6-2, 5-7, 6-1 battle against Czech strategist Kateřina Siniaková. 

After a brief mid-match wobble, the frustrated Osaka recalibrated her devastating baseline power to seal the third set and book a high-stakes third-round clash against Belgium’s No. 23 seed Elise Mertens on Sunday, Sept. 5.

Q.W. Zheng

Not as well known as Eala, Pegula and Osaka, China's Q.W. Zhen has made it to third round, fighting her past Yulia Putinseva in a hard fought 6-4, 2-6, 6-1. The Olympic Gold Medalist will meet up with the US's hard-hitting Madison Keys, Saturday at 8 a.m.

As the US Open continues, the players get better and the matches become  closer. Whatever the outcome, the focus of these Asian players indicates that one of them, or maybe more, could make it deeper into the tournament, the last Grand Slam event of the season.

As the tournament reaches its business end, these athletes are doing far more than advancing through the draw — they are fundamentally reshaping the culture of grand slam tennis. Win or lose in the coming rounds, their presence at Flushing Meadows signals a dynamic shift in the sport, bringing new energy, diverse fandoms, and an undeniable new era to the court.

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Eala Mania graces NYT front page—And It’s the Asian American joy we desperately need

The New York Times front page of Sept. 3, 2026.

Look who made the front page of the New York Times! It is not often Little Manila gets front-page exposure in the country's foremost newspaper.

What makes the Sept. 3 article unique is that the news story doesn't involve violence, corruption or sexual misconduct. It's about a tennis player -- Alex Eala, the Philippine sensation that is bringing attention not only to her play in the US Open, but to the Filipino Americans in New York City.

When mainstream media points its cameras toward the Asian diaspora or our homelands, we know the drill. We brace ourselves for the usual rotation of grim headlines: typhoons, geopolitical standoffs, rising hate crimes, or a localized tragedy. It’s a relentless news cycle that feeds on mayhem and treats our communities as places of perpetual struggle.

But today, The New York Times flipped the script.

Splashed across the front page is a massive, triumphant image of Alex Eala, the 21-year-old tennis phenom from the Philippines smashing her way through the U.S. Open. If you’ve been following the AAPI sports landscape, you already know the kid is electric. But the article—penned by Hilary Howard with stunning photography by Hiroko Masuike—isn't just a sports recap.

Titled "In Little Manila, This U.S. Open Redefines Love," the piece focuses squarely on Little Manila in Woodside, Queens. It dives into how a single city block, thick with the scent of charcoal-grilled barbecue and brewing kapeng barako, has completely transformed into an epicenter of pure, unfiltered diaspora joy.

Pinoy pride

Here is why this front-page real estate matters so much to us, and why it shatters the usual media blueprint:

• Centering Love Over Mayhem: The mainstream press loves to analyze FilAm neighborhoods through lenses of hardship or marginalization. Instead, the Times chose to anchor its most valuable page in an exploration of community love and collective pride. That's an intentional, radical editorial choice.

• The "Invisible" Immigrant as the Hero: The real stars of this feature aren't the celebrity athlete—they are the ordinary people taking up space. It’s the community organizer printing bright yellow tennis posters in a Queens church basement. It’s the local business owners and occupational therapists. It honors the working-class immigrants who built this enclave, declaring that their joy is front-page news.

• Building a Global Home Stadium: Eala has spoken before about the isolation of not having a true "home tournament" or a massive home-court stadium back in Manila. The piece beautifully illustrates how the global Filipino diaspora refuses to let her play alone. Whether she is in Manhattan, Melbourne, or Queens, her kababayans show up in droves, armed with blue, red, and yellow flags, building a stadium out of thin air just for her.

This isn't a story about winning or losing a match. It’s about what happens when an ethnic enclave refuses to be relegated to the sidelines of American life. It’s a beautiful reminder that our communities are defined by our resilience, our deep culture, and the vibrant spaces we build together.

New York City's Filipino Americans celebrate the creation of "Little Manila Avenue."

The Big Apple's 'Little Manila'

To truly understand why "Eala Mania" is setting The New York Times front page ablaze, you have to understand the concrete, the history, and the people of Little Manila in Woodside, Queens. This isn’t just a destination where people grab a bite to eat on the way to the U.S. Open. It is the spiritual and cultural hearth for the roughly 86,000 Filipinos who call New York City home.

The story begins in the 1970s, triggered by the 1965 Immigration and Nationality Act. Facing a catastrophic nursing shortage, New York City hospitals cast a wide net across the Pacific, recruiting thousands of brilliant, highly trained medical professionals from the Philippines. 

Throngs of these pioneering nurses took positions down the road at Elmhurst Hospital. They looked for a place to raise families, build community, and anchor their dreams, settling heavily right under the shadow of the 7 Train in Woodside. Today, over 50,000 Filipinos live in Queens alone, making up the vibrant tapestry of the "world's borough."

If you take a stroll down Roosevelt Avenue between 58th and 74th Streets, you are stepping directly into a living monument of diaspora resilience. This commercial corridor functions as the community's lifeline. You see it in Filipino American businesses and restaurants that have anchored these blocks for generations, such as Phil-Am Food Mart,  Ihawan, Renee's Kitchenette & Grill and Tito Rad's Grill .

But Little Manila is far more than just a culinary hotspot; it is a sanctuary. When the COVID-19 pandemic devastated New York, these very blocks were the epicenter of the crisis. The neighborhood's frontline healthcare heroes bore the brunt of the trauma, yet the community rallied, feeding its own and comforting the city. 

That deep history of collective labor and care is exactly why grassroots organizers fought so hard for public visibility, culminating in the official street co-naming of "Little Manila Avenue" at 70th Street and Roosevelt Avenue in June 2022.

So when you see Alex Eala's face splashed across the front page of the Times, remember the community backing her. This neighborhood isn't just watching a tennis tournament. They are asserting their place in American history, turning a stretch of Queens into a global home court, and showing the world exactly what love and diaspora power look like.

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