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Camila Osorio vs. Donna Vekić was as good a final as you could get without Alex Eala, and a fitting way to wrap up a very successful Philippine Women’s Open.
Alex Eala may have been eliminated in the quarterfinals, but the championship match of the WTA 125 Philippine Women’s Open was still worth the price of admission and put an emphatic bow on a historic event.
It was a match that lasted over two hours and went the full three sets, and featured the two players who were also massive fan favorites: Camila Osorio, the ever-smiling Colombian, and Donna Vekić, the Croatian who was affectionately called Tita Donna by fans on social media.
The final served up some incredible tennis from both competitors, and even had a little bit of drama near the end. After Vekić easily took the first set, 6-2, it appeared as if the match would be a dud.
But Osorio quickly put it behind her and came roaring back to take the second set, 6-3, and set up a winner-take-all third.
“I feel like I was just trying to be very consistent the whole match,” she said afterwards. “Even though I lost the first set, I was just trying to be focused on what I have to do. And if you could tell, I didn’t even get mad. I was just like, okay, it happens.
“She’s playing also great tennis. She had confidence. So the whole match, I was just like, okay, what is working for me and what do I have to approach now? So every single point, I was just trying to do that.
“And yeah, for sure, maybe that was a key point. Maybe sometimes it can change a bit more confidence and things like this. But even though I lost the first set, I was just very calm and thinking about what to do next.”
Both players held serve for the first eight games before Osorio converted a break point in the ninth to edge ahead, 5-4. The finish line was now in sight for the amiable Colombian, while for Vekić, the frustration boiled over as she threw her racket to the ground.
But moments later, Vekić broke right back to again even things up and urged the crowd to rally to her side, which they did, of course. But as she had been the whole week, Osorio remained calm and answered with her own break, and suddenly she was serving for the match.
Championship point came courtesy of an ace, and just like that, what began as an ambitious project in early December was finally in the books as the first-ever WTA tennis tournament to be held in the Philippines reached its conclusion.
For Osorio, the win was a confidence-booster after a rough start to the 2026 season that saw her lose in the first round of three straight tournaments.
“It’s very, very important. And obviously, I had a tough beginning of the year. So winning this match means a lot to me. And obviously, also being the first time here, it’s unreal and basically a fairytale for me.”
Vekić was emotional after the loss, and even an hour later was still trying to figure out what had gone wrong for her in the final after a strong showing earlier in the week.
“It’s tough for me to say right now. I need some time to process, maybe look at the match, think about it. Right now, I’m too emotional. It was very close.
“She was playing really well. Nothing to say. It was really, really close.”
In the end, it all boiled down to Osorio digging deep into her cheery disposition. Always packing a smile – Eala, who lost to the Colombian, called her “just a sweet person” – Osorio decided to just go with the flow and live in the moment.
“I was telling myself, ‘you like this, enjoy this,’ and things like that. Trying to be very, very positive. I don’t know if you can notice, but the last game, I was just trying to smile. I was like, ‘listen, this is what I’ve been working for. So if I don’t enjoy it, what’s the point? Imagine being there. Obviously, it’s pressure. But I was just like, come on, come on, you got it. This is what you wanted, this is what you worked for.
“And I think that was the key for me, just to stay very, very positive. I think over-positive, because sometimes you will hit winners, and I’ll be like, it’s okay, it’s okay. But it is what it is. It is tennis. And yeah, I just enjoyed my final today.”
Ready for the next step
Aside from Osorio, the other big winner was the organizing committee co-spearheaded by the Philippine Tennis Association and the Philippine Sports Commission. All week the players were raving about the Philippine Women’s Open, and how it was better than other WTA 125s that they had experienced. From the food, to the hotel accommodations to the salon made available to the players, everything was praise-worthy for the participants.
“I said it the whole week, the tournament has been really, really good,” Osorio said. “I’ve got nothing to say more than congrats. Congrats for hosting this beautiful tournament. Thank you for making it possible. To every single person that organized it, it was really nice.
“You can tell they made it with love, which is very nice to see. Also to you guys for being here. You also make it really special, so thank you for that. If there’s something they can improve next year, it will be to make it bigger, I would say.”
Vekić thought the crowd was phenomenal.
“I really enjoyed my week here,” she said. I think the crowd support has been the best thing the whole week. It was really pushing us to give our best and push ourselves to the limit. Hopefully, the crowd enjoyed.”
No less than the WTA supervisor Cristina Romero, a veteran of several tournaments of this magnitude, was left impressed.
“I have to say that I have done several 125s, and I have to say it has a very, very high standard for it. Actually, it’s an event that competes with (WTA) 250s in different categories, and I think that the most important part is that we all felt very welcome here in the Philippines. We saw the crowd, that they were super interested in the tournament since day one, since the qualifying.
“We had a huge amount of people coming every day. We understand that Alex Eala brought a lot of attention to the community, to the people, to come and see matches, but she was not the only one that enjoyed the huge crowds, and that shows that the fans of the Philippines are ready to come and enjoy tennis. They really like the sport.
“As you could see, we have a very good field for players, but also it’s a great opportunity for WTA players to experience tournaments in this, in Asia-Pacific. They are lacking in tournaments, and I think it’s a great opportunity also to develop the tennis in the region.”
In Romero’s assessment, the Philippines is ready for bigger things, like a WTA 250 tournament, although she made it clear that decision was above her pay grade.
“This is something that is decided by my superiors. Of course, with my feedback of the tournament and how the organization integrate events, that can help, of course, to know that the Philippines is prepared to do a worldwide event. That is for sure.
“The other thing is that the tournament and the calendar has to be prepared by different people. There’s the Players’ Council, there’s the Tournament Council, so that is a decision that comes from the organization, and we will have to see if they have a spot in the calendar to do it.
“But if you’re asking me if the Philippines would be ready to do a tournament of a higher caliber, then they are ready.”
Romero praised the organizers for having several contingency plans in place, such as when the rains interrupted play in Day 3 and the players were able to warm up on a covered court nearby.
“What I can tell you is that the people, the organizing team did a fantastic job. They put up the best conditions for our 125. And they went above and beyond on what they could do. So what I only hope is that this tournament brings the Philippines the recognition of what they can do. And hopefully, in the future, they can have more and better events.”
Banner images from PHILTA/Philippine Women’s Open