Regardless of the result of tonight's quarterfinal match between Alex Eala and Ukraine's Elina Svitolina, one thing is certain, the 21-year-old Filipina tennis superstar has arrived.
Eala carries the pride of her nation and while she has two WTA 125 championships so far, her win over Kazakhstan's Elena Rybakina, 7-5, 6-4, has got to be her best match yet since turning pro. Yes, better than her straight sets win over Poland's Iga Swiatek at the Miami Open 2025. I know Svitolina is red hot right now but with such confidence after her first two matches at the Berlin Open, a WTA 500 tournament, Eala is just as formidable and could pull off another big upset.
I mean it was only a month ago when Rybakina won their first ever meeting, 6-4 6-3, at the clay courts of the Italian Open. In that match, Rybakina was clearly in control and not once looked rattled while Eala, though she had some impressive winners, was left scrambling defensively.
It reminded me of her match against Canada's Victoria Mboko at the Prudential Hong Kong Tennis Open last year. Eala actually took the first set and was up two games in the third but couldn't react on the defensive end against the eventual tournament champion.
Having had the opportunity to watch Eala live, I could tell she has the skills that could help her win matches in the early stages of a tournament. But there were a couple of things lacking. One was defense. When pushed behind the baseline, she would go for short high lobs that her opponents could easily put away (and almost always did). Also, her second serve still needed to be worked on.
But re-watching the Rome match and comparing it to this Eala victory in Berlin is like night and day. I've always felt that her game is better suited for fast surfaces and that is becoming more and more evident as she continues to get used to playing high level matches on grass.
Down 2-4 in the first set, Eala surprises everyone watching but none more so than Rybakina as she attacked the world no.2's serves a couple of times. In the seventh game of the first set, Eala returned to Rybakina's forehand then hit the down the line backhand winner to get breakpoint. She followed through by hitting another devastating backhand that caught Rybakina a split-second too slow to make it 3-4.
The first set remained close although Eala stayed consistent by attacking her opponent's serve and eventually held serve in the 12th game to take a 1-0 lead.
Suddenly, the momentum is on Eala's side, she's serving well, and she is able to confidently change up her shots. By the third game, one could already feel the upset coming as Rybakina was making some unlikely unforced errors. And that was because Eala finally had that one other thing she needed to get deeper in tournaments on a more consistent basis.
She now has that intimidation factor.
Skills, the right tennis gears, and fitness are great to have but having the ability to make your opponents second guess themselves is what separates the great champions from the rest. Opponents of tennis legends Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Serena Williams have said that they felt intimidated knowing that either of the three would be their next match.
Personally, it's surprising how Eala has developed this level of maturity at 21. She is wise beyond her years. You also see it on the court as her tennis IQ is evolving in every match. And she is clearly also putting in the solid hours of work on her fitness.
Off court, she answers interview questions calmly, she thinks before she speaks, and is amiable to her fans especially the young ones. I remember after her practice session in Hong Kong, kids shouted "Eala!" and despite being tired, she gamely acknowledged them. Everything she says about having gratitude for the opportunity to do what she does lines up and Filipino tennis fans all over the world should be excited not just because Eala represents the best of us but also because she is our best hope of making history in tennis. And it's worth mentioning over and over again that because of her, tennis has grown in popularity in the Philippines and the youth are inspired to take up the sport.
Those who dismiss Eala's achievements because of her early exits in tournaments should not see those as a negative but as learning experiences for her to get to that level she's certainly focused on getting to. I know it's too early to say it but with Eala improving exponentially, she may be ranked in the top 15 (or higher) by the end of the year and hopefully, a Grand Slam Women's Singles Champion in 2027. By Dexter R. Matilla
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