‘This is the life I dreamed of’: Tennis sensation Alex Eala on making history for Philippines

Filipino tennis sensation Alex Eala has emerged as arguably the best young player to come out of Southeast Asia in recent years, with the 19-year-old establishing herself as a rising star to watch.

Eala showcased her talent with a historic run at the recently concluded Miami Open, where she reached the semifinal stage. The Filipina star defeated three Grand Slam winners en route to the semifinals, marking the deepest tournament run by a Filipino tennis player in history.

The young tennis prodigy continues to make history, achieving a new milestone in her career by jumping to No. 69 in the latest Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) rankings.

Eala’s recent exploits have made her one of the most recognizable faces in tennis today. However, the young star—while acknowledging the love and support she receives from Filipino fans around the world—is taking such acclaim in stride.

“Well, for me, I think it’s important to keep things simple because sometimes if you read into things too much, it can get very overwhelming. And, you know, with being able to navigate blackouts or navigate losses, in the end, these are experiences that you’re going to be talking about in 20 years’ time and tell, I don’t know, your kids, your friends, ‘Oh, this happened,’” Eala said, as quoted by Newsweek.

Tennis player Alex Eala’s breakout run at the Miami Open made history when she became the first Filipina to break into the Top 100. Hear why she’s “super excited” to be making her grand slam debut are Roland Garros this week.

Read more: https://t.co/FsP5lROv8x pic.twitter.com/3h5ID4Hd2N

— Newsweek (@Newsweek) May 21, 2025

“Growing up, a lot of my classmates in school would be playing volleyball, basketball. They would be dancing or doing ballet—stuff like that. Tennis was such a big part of my life. I was surrounded by it, and that’s how my love for the sport grew and really fostered,” she added.

Eala spent five years training at the Rafa Nadal Academy under the tutelage of the legendary Spaniard, graduating just last year. During her time at the academy, she emerged as arguably the best young player from Southeast Asia and became the only Filipino athlete to win a Grand Slam tournament—triumphing in the 2022 US Open girls’ event.

“It’s such a blessing to come from where I come from because I feel the Filipino community is like no other. We are so proud of our roots and culture. For me to be able to bring that out and expose it to the tennis world and the international scene—this is such a blessing,” Eala stated.

Many have likened her style of play to that of the legendary Rafael Nadal. However, Eala revealed that while she inherited her fighting spirit from Nadal, she was inspired by former Russian superstar Maria Sharapova during her childhood.

“Growing up, I used to look up to Maria Sharapova, Li Na, and Simona Halep. And although they have done great things, I wanted to do my own things—I wanted to achieve my own greatness,” she concluded.

Eala, who turns 20 on May 23, has been busy preparing for her Roland Garros debut, participating in the WTA Italian Open in Rome and the Parma Ladies Open in Italy. The French Open qualifiers are currently underway, with the main draw taking place from May 28 onwards.

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