Thirty-nine minutes. That is all it took for husband-and-wife duo Elina Svitolina and Gael Monfils to end Alex Eala’s US Open mixed doubles campaign, and the ending carries extra bite: Svitolina had lost both previous meetings with the Filipina this year before Tuesday night in New York.
A 4-1, 4-1 sweep at Louis Armstrong Stadium
Playing their first competitive match together as a pair, Svitolina and Monfils won 4-1, 4-1 in the Round of 16. Eala and Felix Auger-Aliassime actually drew first blood, taking the opening game behind an ace from world No. 4 Auger-Aliassime, but the married couple answered with four straight games to steal the first set in just 15 minutes.
The second set followed the same script. Eala and Auger-Aliassime, urged on by a loud Filipino contingent, leveled at 1-all, yet the veterans captured the final three games, closing it out when Auger-Aliassime’s backhand found the net.
| Match facts | Detail |
|---|---|
| Result | Svitolina/Monfils def. Eala/Auger-Aliassime 4-1, 4-1 |
| Time | 39 minutes |
| Venue | Louis Armstrong Stadium, Flushing Meadows |
| Format | FAST4: first to four games, no-ad scoring, 10-point match tiebreak |
| Round | Mixed doubles Round of 16 |
Svitolina finally solves the Eala puzzle
There was history on the line here. Svitolina had dropped both previous meetings with Eala at the Berlin Open and the Mubadala DC Open, so this win doubles as revenge, achieved alongside a partner playing his farewell tour. This is Monfils’ final US Open before he retires later this season, and the Frenchman showed flashes of the showmanship that made him a fan favorite for two decades.
The Eala Effect filled the stadium anyway
Even in defeat, the draw of the Filipina was unmistakable. The official US Open recap noted fans filled Armstrong to support the Top 20 Filipina, giving thousands of New York spectators a first taste of the revamped mixed doubles event. Back home, Eala sits at world No. 18, the highest ranking ever reached by a Southeast Asian player, form that carried her into New York as a seeded singles player.
What is next for Eala in New York
The mixed doubles exit closes one chapter but not the tournament. The singles main draw begins August 30, where Eala’s seeding places her among the projected contenders, and she is also slated for the Stars of the Open exhibition against American Iva Jovic. We previewed this exact mixed doubles matchup when the draw dropped, and the takeaway stands: the singles run is where Filipino tennis history will be written next.
