Eala feels the Filipino support at the Italian Open and makes a discovery at the Vatican
ROME (AP) — There were plenty of Filipino flags waving in support of Alexandra Eala amid the statues lining the picturesque Pietrangeli court at the Italian Open on Friday. Eala beat 31st-seeded Wang Xinyu 6-4, 6-3 to follow up her three-set victory over Magdalena French in the opening round and put together consecutive clay-court victories for the first time since the qualifying rounds for the 2024 French Open. “Yes, I did notice it,” Eala said of the Filipino support in Rome.
The 20-year-old Eala has become a worldwide sensation among the large Filipino diaspora ever since her breakthrough run to the Miami Open semifinals last year. Her fan base expanded again when she beat Clara Tauson in a long third-set tiebreaker in the first round at the U. S.
Open last year for her first win in a major. She attracted more attention at this year’s Australian Open — the closest Grand Slam to the Philippines. Eala also noticed Filipino flags hanging outside a building on her way to visit the Vatican this week.
“I was like, ‘OK, we really are everywhere. ’ And then I later learned that that’s the embassy of the Philippines to the Vatican,” she said. “And funny story: My great grandmother, she used to work there way back when.
So it was full circle or something sentimental. ” Nadal's academy While Eala prefers faster surfaces, she has plenty of access to clay courts at the Rafa Nadal Academy in Spain where she's based. “I have a great team, very knowledgeable, and they are definitely guiding me and navigating me through this phase of the tour,” Eala said.