Beaming Alexandra Eala thanks raucous fans after cruising to US Open first round win

Philippine tennis star beats America’s Mary Stoiana in straight sets, while fans packed out stands just to watch her practice hours earlier

Alexandra Eala cruised to a straight sets win in the first round of the US Open, then thanked her legions of fans who turned the tournament into a home away from home for the Philippine star.

Eala dispatched American Mary Stoiana 6-1, 6-2 in Louis Armstrong Stadium, cheered on by supporters who had packed out the practice court just to watch her train in the hours before her opening match.

In a brief on-court interview, the charismatic 21-year-old said the fans made it “such a pleasure to do my job”.

Her fans arrived at Flushing Meadows bearing Filipino flags, and wearing hats telling her to fight on “Laban Alex”. They cheered her sizzling groundstrokes, documented her volleys and serves in photos and video, and in some cases FaceTimed with friends or family.

It was about four hours before Eala was scheduled to play and every seat at the practice court was filled. Many of Eala’s fans didn’t have tickets for the evening session on Monday in New York. But they’d come to see their idol hit some tennis balls.