Camila Osorio defeats Olympic silver medalist Donna Vekic of Croatia at the Philippine Women's Open, held at the Rizal Memorial Coliseum in Manila on January 31, 2026. Jonathan Cellona, ABS-CBN News
MANILA — Winning the inaugural Philippine Women's Open crown was more than just a victory for Colombia's Camila Osorio.
The 24-year-old outlasted Croatia's Donna Vekic in a three-set thriller, 2-6, 6-3, 7-5, in the Philippine Women's Open final at the Rizal Memorial Tennis Center on Saturday.
For the World No. 82 player, taking home the WTA 125 championship was a confidence boost for the rest of the season.
Tennis: Colombia's Camila Osorio wins inaugural PH Women's Open
Before the inaugural tournament, Osorio faced two early exits in the ASB Classic and Hobart International in January.
"It's really important to me because it's the first time I won a tournament on hard court and outside my home. So it's very, very important and obviously, I had a tough start of the year. So winning this match means a lot to me," Osorio said in the post-match press conference on Saturday.
"And obviously being [my] first time here [in the Philippines], it's like it's unreal. And basically it's a fairytale for me," she added.
The 24-year-old talked about how she stayed in the game despite losing the first set.
"I feel like I was just trying to be consistent in the whole match. Even though I lost the first set, I was just trying to be focused in what I had to do. I didn't even get mad, I was like it's okay it happens she's playing good," Osorio said.
"I was telling myself, you like this, I enjoy this and things like this. Trying to be very very positive. I don't know if you noticed but in the last game I was trying to smile... I think that was the key for me," she added.
Osorio, who has won the hearts of Filipino tennis fans, ranked the support and the country's hosting as among the top in her books.
"Yeah for sure I think besides Colombia, this is my top one. As I said, they [Filipinos] are very kind, very loving and I can feel the passion. So it's very nice to see the energy. And yeah I think it's in the top three for sure," she said.
As the Colombian player sets her sights on the next tournament, Osorio shared her goals for the rest of the season.
"Obviously, this changed [me] really confidence-wise. I needed it. I needed these matches. My goal this year, I use this word and also my pre-season the whole time, is to be consistent. Obviously that's the key for women's tennis," she said.
"If you're consistent you'll be able to win more and more matches. That's my goal for the upcoming tournaments: To be able to play my game, to be more free just to do what I've been working on and to keep growing," Osorio added.
The inaugural Philippine Women's Open crown marks the first WTA challenger title for Osorio, alongside three WTA 250 championships.
WTA lauds PH for successful first-ever WTA 125 hosting
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