Alex Eala has been slowly finding her footing on the WTA Tour, though she did win her first tournament in 2026. 2027 could be more special as long as she keeps honing her craft. But her acumen at playing tennis is only part of her story. Her legion of fans and her leadership in her part of the world are two others.
It is for the latter that TIME Magazine bestowed the honor on Eala by naming her to the TIME100 Next, a list of "emerging leaders from around the world." To be clear, those individuals on the list aren't just sports stars; they come from far different walks of life, too.
Not only was Eala named to the list, but her section of the piece was written by Rafael Nadal, whose tennis academy Eala has been a student at. It was Eala who inspired Nadal to pick up a racket again after he retired in 2024.
Alex Eala named to the TIME100 Next list
But the legend was more glowing about how he sees Eala as a good person, which is more important than how great she might be at playing tennis.
Nadal wrote, in part, "But perhaps more importantly, Alex remains a wonderful person—warm, approachable, and humble. It isn’t easy to handle becoming a true phenomenon at such a young age, and she deserves a lot of credit for keeping her feet on the ground."
That last bit might sound like hyperbole, but it is far from it. Few players (if any) have so many fans willing to follow them around the globe to watch them play in various tournaments. This is more astonishing because Eala hasn't yet established herself as a player who will consistently go deep in tournaments. Fans might be paying for tournament and plane tickets only to watch Eala lose early.
That is a lot of pressure on any player, but especially one who is still only 21 years old. She not only has the weight of her own expectations, but the weight of an entire nation willing to tune in at all hours to watch her play. In the Philippines, an Alexandra Eala match isn't just a piece of tennis, but a point of national pride.
Yet, Eala wins or loses with a smile. She is intense, of course, and she doesn't like to lose, but she shows grace either way. That takes poise and self-awareness; the kind that many people are never able to possess. Alex Eala does so easily. She is famous now, but just imagine what happens when she starts playing at the level to challenge for Grand Slam titles.
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