Alex Eala set to be handed a glorious chance to climb the rankings after Wimbledon heroics
Alex Eala declared she was content with her progress after reaching the last-16 at Wimbledon and now the Filipina will be targeting more success in the final months of 2026.
Eala was the shining star of Wimbledon in the opening week of the tournament, with her win against defending champion Iga Swiatek a moment that cemented her status as one of the rising stars of the game.
She will now see her ranking move to a new high when the list is updated on Monday and while she is now back in the top 30, Eala should be setting her sights much higher over the next six months.
With limited points to defend between now and the end of 2026, Eala has a real chance to finish this year inside the top 20 and she may even be able to aim for more than that.
Eala was knocked out in the first round of the WTA 1000 Canadian Open last year and she didn’t play at the Cincinnati event that precedes the US Open.
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She was then knocked out of the US Open in the second round, so if she were to piece together four of five wins in those three events, her breakthrough in the top 20 of the rankings could be beckoning.
Anything more, especially at the US Open, could fire her rapidly up the rankings and she admits the confidence she got from her run at Wimbledon will propel her forward.
“There are so many positives,” she said after losing against Jasmine Paolini at Wimbledon.
“One, I think, is how I’ve handled pressure. There’s pressure every week, right? Of course, the more you want to win, I think the more kind of like pressure goes along with that.
“I’m happy with how I faced it head on. I think I kept cool when I needed to control my emotions. Overall performed the best that I could on the day.
“I think this week, in general, will add to my confidence. It’s been one of my best results, right? Of course, it will add confidence.
“I think it’s important that every match I played this week, and every match that I play, I go in with the self-esteem and the thought that I’m able to win. I don’t think that necessarily because of one week or the other that that will change.”
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Eala should also take confidence from the comments of former British No 1 Greg Rusedski, as he poured praise on Eala and suggested she is a Grand Slam champion in the making.
“This is somebody who’s going to win the Wimbledon Championship one day and possibly get to the top five in the world. She is that good,” said Rusedski on his podcast, after he watched Eala big moment from the commentary box on Centre Court.
“The ground strokes, the tenacity, absolutely brilliant. It was great for me to see her live and I was so impressed.
“What I was impressed with was her mental fortitude, her strength, her mentality. She was the one who looked like she had the six major titles. It wasn’t Iga Swiatek, who looked anxious, she was nervous.
“Eala shows she has a very high tennis IQ and has been trained brilliantly well at the Rafael Nadal Academy. The sky’s the limit for her. I really look at her serve, and it’s not that far away from being a great serve in time if she changes just a few little aspects, but the mentality is like Rafa. Never say die from start to finish, gets the job done, finds a way.
“She is the real deal. She is a breath of fresh air. And what a moment. The first Filipino man or woman to be in the fourth round at a major. And I think the roll will keep on going for her.”
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