Tennis greats name Alex Eala the ‘biggest draw in women’s tennis’ today

By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña

From the next big thing to an absolute rock star.

Alex Eala is her.

Trailblazer, one of one, trendsetter. It all fits the bill.

After an impressive lawn tennis campaign in the ongoing WTA tournament calendar so far, some tennis greats have already claimed that the 22-year-old stalwart is now the biggest name in women’s tennis, greeted by a full house and packed stands in almost every competition she has participated in from all over the world.

As the first-ever Filipina to achieve such feats, Eala has become the embodiment of hope, resilience, perseverance, and inspiration to millions of Filipinos dreaming of setting foot in the brightest lights of professional tennis.

During the latest YouTube episode of the Nothing Major tennis podcast uploaded on Feb. 24, 2026, retired male players Sam Querrey, John Isner, and Steve Johnson discussed Eala’s rise to stardom.

Querrey, the former ATP No. 11 player, asked Isner and Johnson: “Is she the biggest draw in women’s tennis right now? In the world?”

Johnson quickly replied: “Yeah.”

The former No. 21 ATP player even claimed that Eala is bigger than Coco Gauff and Aryna Sabalenka, the current No. 4 and No. 1 WTA players, respectively.

“Dude, every court, in Australia, it was standing room only. Then Dubai, standing room only. It’s insane. It’s massive,” added Johnson.

For consecutive WTA tournaments in the past seven months, Eala’s games in the different venues were always sold out, and it wasn’t only because of the Filipino fans, but also due to her growing fan base around the world.

“People are pouring on,” said Querrey.

“It’s like the news is just getting bigger and bigger in every tournament that she is in. I’m assuming that it’s the Filipino community from all over the world.”

In just two months since the 2026 WTA tournament calendar kicked off, Eala has already collected notable achievements, including her ranking skyrocketing from No. 50 to No. 31.

She has already made three major WTA quarterfinal finishes in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and the Philippines, and back-to-back semifinal appearances in the singles and doubles events of the ASB Classic in New Zealand.

As of now, Eala is intensifying her training in preparation for the Indian Wells tournament, scheduled for March 4, 2026, and the Miami Open on March 17, 2026, where she took down three former Grand Slam queens last year.

“She’s already been on the cover of Vogue, and she’s like playing well right now too. If she wins a Grand Slam, it would be one of the biggest things in the world,” praised Querrey.