Camila Osorio etched her name in history on Saturday night, January 31, rallying from a set down to defeat Donna Vekic 2-6, 6-3, 7-5 and capture the first-ever Philippine Women’s Open singles title before a packed Rizal Memorial Tennis Center. The Colombian fifth seed showed grit, patience and fearless shot-making in a championship duel that thrilled the Center Court crowd for more than two and a half hours.

After a lopsided opening set that went Vekic’s way, Osorio regrouped and steadily flipped the momentum. Refusing to let the Croatian dictate from the baseline, the world No. 84 absorbed pressure, extended rallies and forced errors to claw her way back into contention in a match worthy of the tournament’s historic billing.

Osorio turns the tide in a classic final

Vekic looked in complete control early, racing to a 4-1 lead in the opening set and closing it out in 42 minutes with her aggressive groundstrokes and heavy serving. The Paris Olympic silver medalist appeared poised to repeat her previous win over Osorio, whom she defeated in Cincinnati in 2022.

Osorio, however, found her rhythm in the second set, neutralizing Vekic’s serve and matching her power from the backcourt. After building her own 4-1 cushion, the Colombian held firm in extended rallies and leveled the match at one set apiece, capitalizing on a Vekic backhand error to seal the frame.

The deciding set unfolded as a tense tug-of-war, with both players holding serve deep into the third. At 4-all, cracks finally appeared in Vekic’s composure as she surrendered her serve for the first time in the set. Although the Croatian responded by breaking back to make it 5-all, Osorio immediately struck again, breaking serve once more before closing the match with an ace on her own delivery.

A milestone victory on Philippine soil

The victory earned Osorio 125 WTA ranking points and the champion’s purse of $15,500, while cementing her place as the inaugural singles queen of the WTA 125 event organized by the Philippine Tennis Association and supported by the Philippine Sports Commission.

Vekic, ranked No. 72 in the world, settled for runner-up honors along with 81 ranking points and $8,500, marking her first three-set match of the tournament. Despite the loss, the Croatian praised both her opponent and the enthusiastic Filipino crowd, expressing hopes of returning for future editions.

Osorio, who claimed her third career title since turning professional in 2020, was visibly emotional during the awarding ceremony attended by Philta president Edwin Olivarez, Philta secretary general John Rey Tiangco and PSC chairperson Patrick Gregorio. Her triumph capped a landmark week for women’s tennis in the country and set a high standard for the tournament’s future.