The 21-year-old left-hander produced a dominant display in the final two sets to overcome world number three Pegula after the championship match resumed following a lengthy weather interruption that delayed the conclusion for almost a full day.
The victory marked the biggest achievement of Eala’s professional career and continued an extraordinary tournament run that saw her defeat several established names in women’s tennis.
Eala, ranked 28th before the tournament, entered her second career final after finishing runner-up at Eastbourne last year. Against Pegula, she delivered a composed performance, combining strong serving with aggressive shot-making and a series of powerful winners to deny the American a 12th career title and her third championship of the season.
Although the official match duration was listed as one hour and 45 minutes, the contest stretched across nearly 24 hours because of repeated rain delays.
Pegula had taken the opening set 6-4 on Sunday, while Eala led 2-1 in the second set when officials suspended play due to worsening weather conditions.
The players had already endured a three-hour delay before the match began, and after the suspension, another five-hour wait followed before organisers eventually postponed the remainder of the final until Monday.
The weather disruption also affected the men’s ATP final between American Taylor Fritz, ranked 10th in the world, and 19-year-old Spaniard Rafael Jodar, which was also moved to a later date.
Eala takes control after restart
When play resumed on Monday, Pegula held serve in a tense opening game to level the second set at 2-2.
However, the American struggled to create opportunities against Eala’s serve, and the Filipino star eventually found the breakthrough she needed, breaking Pegula in the 10th game to claim the set and force a deciding third.
The final set belonged entirely to Eala.
With a strong crowd behind her, the young Filipino player produced a confident and attacking display, racing through the deciding set 6-0 to secure the historic victory.
Her path to the title was particularly impressive. Throughout the week, Eala received strong support from fans as she defeated a series of highly ranked opponents, including second seed Elina Svitolina, former world number one Naomi Osaka and defending champion Leylah Fernandez.
The Washington Open triumph is expected to lift Eala to a new career-high ranking of world number 20, further establishing her as one of the rising stars of women’s tennis.
Beyond the title itself, the victory represents a landmark moment for Philippine sport, with Eala becoming the first Filipino player to claim a WTA championship and opening a new chapter for tennis in her country.