Alex Eala is one of the most popular players in women’s tennis.
The 20-year-old still hasn’t won a WTA title, but that hasn’t bothered her millions of fans.
Does anybody else even come close to Alex Eala’s popularity right now?
Eala is already one of the most famous Filipino athletes and is fast becoming a global superstar.
But does having such a passionate fan base affect the world number 42?
Alex Eala says she wants to give back to her fans and is ‘super grateful’ for their support
During an interview with ‘Tennis Channel‘, Eala was asked if she feels pressure to deliver results for her fans.
“Of course, I want to give back as much as they give to me,” she said.
“But the obligation first and foremost is to myself.
“It’s my journey.
“I am really super grateful that all of these supporters want to follow in that journey that I have, but I owe it to myself first and foremost and to my family and team to give it everything that I have.
“The rest will follow, I think.”
Eala has given her fans plenty to cheer since she made her breakthrough at the 2025 Miami Open.
She sits inside the ‘Live WTA Race’ top 20, having accumulated 842 points this year, more than Grand Slam champions Madison Keys, Naomi Osaka, and Emma Raducanu.
Live WTA Race (Active Grand Slam winners + Alex Eala)
| Rank | Name | Country | Points | Grand Slam titles |
| 1 | Elena Rybakina | Kazakhstan | 4,113 | 2 |
| 2 | Aryna Sabalenka | Belarus | 4,025 | 4 |
| 8 | Coco Gauff | USA | 1,933 | 2 |
| 11 | Iga Swiatek | Poland | 1,203 | 6 |
| 18 | Jelena Ostapenko | Latvia | 926 | 1 |
| 19 | Alex Eala | Philippines | 842 | 0 |
| 21 | Madison Keys | USA | 791 | 1 |
| 52 | Naomi Osaka | Japan | 422 | 4 |
| 66 | Emma Raducanu | Great Britain | 373 | 1 |
| 100 | Barbora Krejcikova | Czechia | 201 | 2 |
| 102 | Sofia Kenin | USA | 190 | 1 |
| 111 | Sloane Stephens | USA | 168 | 1 |
| 139 | Bianca Andreescu | Canada | 98 | 1 |
| 160 | Marketa Vondrousova | Czechia | 61 | 1 |
| 174 | Venus Williams | USA | 43 | 7 |
Eala isn’t the only young player with a big fan base to have enjoyed success recently.
Brazil’s Joao Fonseca has immense potential and is being tipped to form a ‘new big three’ with Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner.
Many have identified the similarities between Eala and Fonseca, and the Filipina has now shared her thoughts on the 19-year-old.
“I’m flattered to be compared to him,” she said.
“I think he is a great player, and he seems to be handling it [the pressure of expectation] really well.
“Maybe that is something I should talk to him about!”
Alex Eala makes winning start at the Italian Open
Making her fans proud, Eala won her opening match at the 2026 Italian Open.
The Filipina edged a competitive three-setter, 6-0, 3-6, 6-4, to advance past Magdalena Frech.
How far can Alex Eala go at the Italian Open?
She’s into the second round!
The win highlighted the improvements Eala has made on clay over the last 12 months.
A year ago, Eala lost her first-round match at the Italian Open in straight sets.
- 2025 Italian Open 1R [LOSS] vs Marta Kostyuk, 0-6, 1-6.
Today, she beat the world 45 to book her spot in the second round.
There, Eala will play China’s Xinyu Wang, the 31st seed.
Wang has enjoyed success on the clay before, winning the French Open doubles title three years ago.
She also has a winning head-to-head record over Eala, defeating the Filipina at this year’s ASB Classic in Auckland.
Eala will be determined to level their head-to-head at 1-1 when they meet in Rome.
If she does, she will advance to the third round of a clay-court Masters 1000 event for the first time in her career.
Alex Eala’s WTA 1000 performance timeline
| WTA 1000 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | 2026 |
| Qatar Open | – | – | – | – | – | 1R |
| Dubai Tennis Championships | – | – | – | – | – | QF |
| Indian Wells | – | – | – | – | – | 4R |
| Miami Open | Q1 | 1R | 1R | Q2 | SF | 4R |
| Madrid Open | – | Q1 | 1R | 2R | 2R | 2R |
| Italian Open | – | – | – | – | 1R | 2R* |
| Canadian Open | – | – | – | – | 1R | – |
| Cincinnati Open | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| China Open | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| Wuhan Open | – | – | – | 1R | Q1 | – |
It remains to be seen if Eala can defeat Wang, but you certainly won’t want to miss it.
Eala will play Wang in the second round on Friday, March 8.