Japan's Sakura Hosogi defeated hometown Steffi Marithe Aludo 6-1, 6-2 on Sunday to move into the main draw of the inaugural Philippine Women's Open starting Monday at the newly-renovated Rizal Memorial Tennis Center.
Seeded No. 1 in the qualifiers, the 25-year-old Ms. Hosogi, who has seven ITF singles titles, was unbeaten to oust Ms. Aludo in an hour and four minutes of play despite a 30-minute match suspension due to rain.
A native of Matsue, Japan, Ms. Hosogi became the first player from the two-day qualifiers to book a ticket to the main WTA 125 event supported by the Philippine Sports Commission (PSC).
“I was nervous but I'm also happy to make the main draw of the Philippine Women's Open in my first WTA tournament,” the Japanese player told English in an interview shortly after her quick win on Center Court.
“I had nothing to lose. I varied my shots but he is better,” Ms Aludo, 17, said after being taken to school by her opponent.
“But I learned a lot from her. Next time I need to focus more on my game and not be intimidated,” said the promising teenager, a pupil of the Philippine Tennis Academy and coached and coached by former national standout Bobby Angelo.
Ms Hosogi was joined in the qualifiers by compatriot Miho Kuramochi, who beat American Mia Horwitz 6-2, 6-1, and Russian Victoria Moravyova, who beat Argentina's Nicole Fossa Huergo 7-5, 6-3.
The International Tennis Showcase is the first major project of the National Sports Tourism-Interagency Committee (NST-IAC) under the leadership of PSC Chairman Patrick “Pato” Gregorio in 2026.
On Monday, all eyes will be on hometown favorite Alexandra Ella, who will finally make her debut on home soil after turning professional in front of an expected sellout crowd against world number 169 Russian Alina Charaeva.
Claiming to be the all-time No. 49 in the world and the No. 2 seed, she will be eager to please the Filipino gallery at the NetFest organized by the Philippine Tennis Association, which was born out of her desire to organize a tournament that the country can call its own.
The first round will also see three more Filipinas in action: Kay Ann Imana, Teniele Madis and Elizabeth Abarquez.
Ms Imana will face Russia's Tatiana Prozorova, Ms Madis will face Thai Mananchaya Sawangkau and Ms Abarquez will face Japanese Mai Hontama.