Alexandra Eala of the Philippines returns a shot against Madison Keys during Day 6 of the Miami Open at Hard Rock Stadium on March 23, 2025 in Miami Gardens, Florida. | Al Bello/Getty Images/AFP
MIAMI GARDENS, United States — Alexandra Eala, the 19-year-old from the Philippines who upset Australian Open champion Madison Keys on Sunday, was handed a place in the quarter-finals after her fourth round opponent, Spain’s Paula Badosa, pulled out with a lower back injury.
In the last eight Eala will face second seed Iga Swiatek who battled past Ukraine’s Elina Svitolina 7-6 (7/5) 6-3.
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Coco Gauff, Sabalenka
Meanwhile, third-seed Coco Gauff’s bid ended with a 6-4 6-4 loss to Poland’s Magda Linette.
Top-seeded Aryna Sabalenka also eased her way into the last eight with a 6-4, 6-4 win over last year’s winner Danielle Collins of the USA.
Next, Sabalenka will be up against ninth seeded Olympic gold medallist Zheng Qinwen who reached her second consecutive WTA 1000 quarter-final, with a straight-sets win over Ashlyn Krueger.
“I’m super happy to get this win in straight sets and happy with the level I played today,” said Sabalenka.
“She’s a tough opponent, and we had a lot of tough and tricky matches in the past. So was very happy to get through this one,” she added.
Paolini sinks Osaka
Italy’s Jasmine Paolini, on the other hand, enjoyed a 3-6, 6-4, 6-4 comeback win over Naomi Osaka in 2 hours and 15 minutes.
Since her comeback from maternity leave 15 months ago, Osaka has been showing some signs of getting back towards her best but Paolini was the first top 10 player Osaka has faced this year.
“I don’t think that I can say that I’ve played a lot of matches against top players like this in a while,” said Osaka.
“The way she plays kind of catches me off guard, simply because of her height. I didn’t know she could hit like that,” she added.
Raducanu continues form
Emma Raducanu also continued her impressive form in Miami, cruising to a 6-1, 6-3 victory in 69 minutes over American Amanda Anisimova, who had eliminated Indian Wells winner Mirra Andreeva on Sunday.
It is the first time Raducanu has won four straight WTA Tour main draw matches in a row since her US Open triumph in 2021. She will face American Jessica Pegula next.
Raducanu, who has brought in some old faces from the early days of her career for this tournament, said she was benefitting from their presence.
“I’m really happy with how things are on and off the court right now and just so happy that’s able to transfer on to the match court,” she said.