Eala in Wimby makes ‘herstory’

 

Alexandra Eala (Photo by Glyn KIRK / AFP)

Despite loss to defending champion Krejcikova

Even before Filipino tennis phenom Alexandra Eala stepped onto Centre Court on Tuesday (Manila time) for her Wimbledon main draw debut against defending champion Barbora Krejcikova, the storyline was already written — win or lose, she had already carved her name into the annals of Philippine tennis history.

At just 20 years old, Eala is the first Filipina in the Open Era to compete in the singles’ main draw of the prestigious championships.

During Tuesday’s match, Krejcikova powered back from a set down to beat Eala.

The Czech was outplayed in the first set but lost just three more games as she completed a 3-6, 6-2, 6-1 win on Centre Court.

Eala broke Krejcikova twice in the first set to take an early grip on the match, producing a succession of fizzing deep groundstrokes.
Barbora Krejcikova (Photo by Glyn KIRK / AFP)
The rusty Krejcikova made 19 unforced errors in an untidy display, struggling to find rhythm with her ball toss on the baking court.

But the 2024 champion quickly gained a foothold in the second set and raced into a 5-0 lead, eventually taking the set as she cut her error count drastically.

The world number 16 stayed in the groove in the decider, wrapping up the match with a powerful backhand down the line.

Ahead of the game, Eala described competing in Wimbledon as her “dream match.”

“It’s the match that everybody, or at least me, I used to dream about when I was young,” she said in an interview with ABS-CBN News.

“I’m playing Centre Court of Wimbledon on my debut against the defending champion. I couldn’t ask for more. I’m going to enjoy it and remember it forever,” she added.

Eala’s journey to Wimbledon has been nothing short of spectacular, marked by a series of groundbreaking performances.

Her year began with a strong run at the Miami Open in March, where she reached the semifinals of the elite WTA 1000 event, defeating three established Grand Slam champions in Jelena Ostapenko, Madison Keys, and, in a stunning upset that captured global headlines, then-world No. 2 Iga Swiatek.

Eala’s deep run in the high-profile tournament boosted her world ranking from outside the top 100 to a career-high of No. 69 in May.

Building on that momentum, Eala continued to impress on the grass courts, a surface traditionally challenging for many, but where she is quite adept.

Only last week, she made history again at the Lexus Eastbourne Open, becoming the first Filipina to reach a WTA Tour final, where she finished runner-up to Australia’s Maya Joint in a tense three-set encounter.

Following her Eastbourne success, Eala achieved a new and official career-high ranking of World No. 56 as of June 29. Her live ranking, however, stands at no. 54 on Tuesday.

Before Eala’s breakthrough, the highest-ranked Filipino tennis player in history was Cecile Mamiit, who reached a career-high world rank of no. 79 in 1999. In the women’s division, it was Maricris Fernandez-Gentz, who peaked at World No. 284. With Charles Dantes and AFP