Filipino tennis sensation Alex Eala confirms that Maria Sharapova was her childhood idol

Filipino tennis sensation Alex Eala has emerged as arguably the best young player to come out of Southeast Asia in recent years, with the 20-year-old establishing herself as a rising star to watch.

Eala has had a brilliant 2025 in terms of performances on the court and recently made her Wimbledon main draw debut. Despite a first-round exit at the hands of Barbora Krejčíková, the young star garnered massive praise from around the world, with Krejčíková even lauding her talent and grit. The World No. 16 also stated that the 20-year-old will be “really good in a couple of years.”

Eala’s recent exploits have made her one of the most recognizable faces in tennis today, and in a recent meet-and-greet session in Bonifacio Global City (BGC) on Friday, July 18, she opened up about her childhood hero. The young Filipina revealed that Russian superstar Maria Sharapova was the player she looked up to, both for her tennis and her fashion sense.

“I looked up to so many players, but my one super idol when I was growing up was Maria Sharapova. It’s because of the way she plays, her mentality, and the way she presented herself that really inspired me,” Eala said on the occasion.

Sharapova was one of the biggest draws in tennis in the late 2000s, eventually winning five Grand Slam tournaments before retiring from the sport in 2020. Eala would have been very young when the Russian was at her peak.

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“I was probably five when I first saw Sharapova. She was always dressed nicely, and she was loved by everyone—and I wasn’t an exception,” Eala added.

The 20-year-old 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 run by a Filipino tennis player in the nation’s history. She also became the first-ever Filipino to reach a WTA tournament final at the Eastbourne Open last month.

Eala is one of the most recognizable Filipino figures, and now that she is in the position Sharapova was during her career, she strives to hold herself to the best possible standards and behavior.

“I do my best to behave as well as I can because I know that in the international tennis scene, I am kind of what comes to mind when people think of Filipinos, so I really do my best. I know a lot of Filipinos look up to me. I want to represent us in a way that Pinoys would be proud of,” Eala concluded.

The young tennis star will next be seen in action in two high-stakes WTA 1000 events—the National Bank Open in Montreal and the Western & Southern Open in Cincinnati. These two tournaments will serve as tune-ups for the 2025 US Open.

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