Alexandra Eala has been one of the WTA’s biggest breakthrough triumphs throughout 2025, and continued to just go from strength to strength.
A proud graduate of the Rafael Nadal Academy, the 20-year-old first shot to fame back in March, as she brushed aside stars like Jelena Ostapenko, Madison Keys and Iga Swiatek to reach the semi-finals of the Miami Open.
This helped her gain qualification for Roland Garros, marking her maiden appearance in the main draw of a Grand Slam.
Now poised to make her debut at Wimbledon in the coming days too, it has been a whirlwind few months for Eala.
Her preparation for the latest major could arguably not have been better.
Alexandra Eala reacts to losing Eastbourne Open final vs Maya Joint
It’s unlikely that Eala will have played a great deal of grass-court tennis in her youth, given her upbringing in both the Philippines and later Nadal’s academy.
However, her recent performance in Eastbourne would not have supported such a claim, as she strolled to yesterday’s final with minimal fuss.
She faced a little pushback from Ostapenko, and again from Varvara Gracheva, but in the end, she set up a youthful final showdown with Maya Joint, another budding star of the WTA.
And, in what was a blockbuster clash, it was the Aussie who came out on top in what was Eala’s first-ever WTA final.
She took to Instagram to post an emotional message after the match, already looking ahead to Wimbledon.
Alexandra Eala faces tough first-round task at Wimbledon
As she touches upon, Eala does in fact have a date with Wimbledon’s famed centre court.
After all, with the draw having emerged on Saturday, the Filipino superstar was pitted against the defending champion Barbora Krejcikova.
It marks a stern opening-round test, but certainly a winnable one given the 29-year-old has suffered with a lack of form and fitness across the last year.
In fact, it’s indicative that the two-time Grand Slam champion actually retired from her most recent tournament, also in Eastbourne.
This youngster has a keen opportunity to dethrone the defending champion in the very first round, and will enter the All-England Club brimming with confidence. Especially given that Eala has beaten plenty of top players in Miami just months ago.
It’s tough, but it’s not impossible to think that this bright starlet could cause an early upset in her first-ever appearance at Wimbledon.
