Alex Eala Survives Injury Scare, Grinds Past Caty McNally In Toronto Thriller

Alex Eala’s win streak refuses to end — and Friday night in Toronto, it needed everything she had. The 25th-seeded Filipina outlasted American Caty McNally 6-3, 5-7, 6-4 in a two-hour, 39-minute battle at Sobeys Stadium, surviving an ankle scare and a determined third-set fightback to reach the Round of 16 at the National Bank Open.

It didn’t start smoothly. McNally, fresh off a stunning upset of Wimbledon champion Linda Noskova, jumped out to a 3-1 lead in the first set behind aggressive, flat hitting off both wings. But Eala steadied herself and reeled off five of the next six games to close out the opener, riding the same composure that carried her to the title in Washington, D.C. the week before.

The second set brought real trouble. Eala turned her ankle in the fifth game and needed a medical timeout to have it taped before continuing. She fought through the discomfort well enough to reach 5-4 and serve for the match — only for McNally to dig in, winning three straight games to force a decider. It was the kind of momentum swing that could have unraveled a lesser run.

Instead, Eala responded exactly as she has all summer. She broke immediately to open the third set, built a 2-0 cushion, and though McNally kept scrapping — closing to 4-3 and again to 5-4 before Eala finally served it out — the Filipina held her nerve when it mattered, sealing the win in the tenth game.

“I want to thank Caty for a great match, being a great sport,” Eala said afterward, visibly emotional. “It’s one of those matches that really could have gone either way. I think it was really down to details and a little bit of luck.”

The win extends Eala’s streak to seven straight victories and keeps her unbeaten on the North American hard-court swing at 7-0. It’s her third consecutive win over an American this stretch, following victories over Jessica Pegula in the DC Open final and Alycia Parks in the second round here in Toronto.

Up next: a heavyweight fourth-round test against Belinda Bencic, the No. 12 seed and former world No. 4, who needed three hours and 24 minutes to get past Taylor Townsend 6-7(5), 7-6(4), 6-4 earlier in the day. It’s a step up in class and experience — but after grinding through a match like this one, Eala has already shown she’s not going anywhere without a fight.