Jessica Pegula expects ‘battle’ vs Alex Eala in DC Open final

Jessica Pegula of the United States returns a shot during a women’s singles match against Anna Kalinskaya on day five of the Mubadala DC Open 2026 at William H.G. FitzGerald Tennis Center on July 31, 2026 in Washington, DC. Emilee Chinn/Getty Images/AFP

MANILA, Philippines–Top-ranked Jessica Pegula expects a tough battle against Alex Eala of the Philippines in the final of the 2026 Mubadala DC Open.

Pegula, No. 3 in the world, beat Eala in a 2025 Miami Open semifinal in their only career meeting.

“It’s going to be a battle,” Pegula said. “Alex, I’m a big fan of her. She’s the future of the tour and she’s already here.”

Pegula eliminated Russia’s Diana Shnaider 7-5, 6-4, in their semifinal match in Washington while Eala stunned former world No. 1 Naomi Osaka 6-4, 6-2.

Pegula, seeking her 12th career WTA title, fell behind 5-2 at the start, but the 32-year-old American top seed battled back to reach her fourth final of the year.

“I found a little rhythm on the return, served a little bit smarter and I was able to play some good tennis, kind of take control of the momentum,” Pegula, who won her first WTA title in 2019 at Washington, said.

Pegula won the last five games of her opening set to seize command after 45 minutes.

In the second set, Pegula broke in the fifth and seventh games. Shnaider broke in the eighth but Pegula served for the match again in the 10th game and smashed a forehand winner to capture her WTA-best 38th match triumph of the year.