Rafael Nadal has been closely following Alexandra Eala`s progress at the Miami Open, a WTA 1000 event where she achieved a significant breakthrough.
Eala, aged 19, has made history this week at Hard Rock Stadium with two victories, marking a major milestone for tennis in the Philippines. Receiving a wild card for the main draw, the world No. 140 player defeated American Katie Volynets in the first round and then overcame No. 25 seed Jelena Ostapenko in a close match, 7-6(2), 7-5.
Her victory over Ostapenko is a landmark achievement, making Eala the first female player representing the Philippines to defeat a Top 30 player since the WTA rankings were introduced in 1975. Notably, she is the only tennis player from the Philippines, male or female, to be ranked in professional tennis.
As Eala advanced through the early stages of the tournament, Nadal, her tennis idol who retired last year, has been supporting her from a distance.
Following her win against Ostapenko, Nadal celebrated Eala`s achievement by posting a message on X, previously known as Twitter.
`Congratulations Alex! What a great win for you and for [the Philippines],` Nadal posted.
Eala, who like Nadal uses Babolat racquets, has stated that training at Nadal`s academy in Mallorca from the age of 13 was a transformative experience. After winning the junior US Open three years ago, another historic achievement, Eala`s popularity in the Philippines (a nation of approximately 115 million people) surged. She has amassed over 126,000 followers on Instagram and has been featured on magazine covers such as Tater and Vogue in her region.
Despite her growing fame, Eala emphasizes that the lessons learned from Nadal have been crucial in maintaining her focus on improving her tennis skills.
`He is so grounded and he has achieved more than anything I could dream of,` she mentioned in an interview with Philippine broadcaster GMA, `and the fact that he is still so nice to everyone around here is very admirable.`
Eala`s next challenge is against Australian Open champion Madison Keys in the third round on Sunday.
Jasper Hawthorne 
Dominic Ashworth