Rising tennis star Alex Eala certainly made an impression on former world no. 1 Mats Wilander, drawing a similarity between the Filipina and legend John McEnroe.
There were no shortages of new fans for the 19-year-old Filipina tennis sensation Alex Eala after her Cinderella run at the Miami Open last month.
Entering as a wild card at world no. 140, Eala breezed her way to the semifinals--stunning not just one but three former Grand Slam champions in world no. 25 Jelena Ostapenko, no. 5 Madison Keys, and no. 2 Iga Swiatek.
Stopped at the semifinals by world no. 4 Jessica Pegula, the Filipina still found plenty of success, rising as the world no. 75 and securing direct berths to major tournaments.
Of course, one of her constant supporters is the King of Clay himself, tennis superstar Rafael Nadal.
Eala, who graduated from the Spaniard's Rafael Nadal Academy, couldn't help but feel... kilig.
"Rafa messaged me. It's the first time he's ever messaged me personally. So I think that was a shock to see," she told her uncle and former PBA commissioner Noli Eala on One PH's Power & Play.
And Eala didn't even see it right away.
"Funny story, I only saw it like a couple of days after," she admitted, as she turned off her phone during match days. "It was exciting to see his notification."
But Nadal was not the only tennis star who was impressed with Eala.
Mats Wilander, a seven-time men's Grand Slam champion and former world no. 1, couldn't help but compare the Filipina to tennis greats such as John McEnroe and Marcelo Rios.
"With Alexandra Eala, we're talking about someone who has hands given by God," Wilander said to TNT Sports.
"She understands the game as good as any player on tour. She reminds me of Marcelo Rios, where the talent is just boiling out of the fingers and boiling out of her hand, and she can do anything. And then the reason I say Marcelo Rios is, of course, she's left-handed."
Rios, who hails from Chile, was the first Latin American to become the world no. 1 in men's singles after reaching the 1998 Australian Open finals.
Wilander then veered spoke of current women's world no. 1 Aryna Sabalenka--who won the Miami Open, along with Swiatek.
"In the women's game, that is so cool that we have someone that comes out that does all these things that maybe Sabalenka and Swiatek are not great at doing. They're great at other things," he said.
"But suddenly, we have a player that can play tennis that is mystical to the rest of us. Like, 'Oh, my God, how do you do that? How do you understand tennis? How do you hit those shots?'"
"The feel, the understanding, I love it. It's basically what John McEnroe did to us in the 1980s," Wilander added.
McEnroe is also a seven-time Grand Slam champion with an Open Era record of 155 titles in singles and doubles combined.
Eala though responded in a low-key way.
"Well those are very flattering words and super flattered to be even mentioned in the same breath as all of these legends," she told her uncle.
"Iga and and Aryna are dominating the tour right now so just to be compared to them is a really good sign for me and I think it reflects on the potential that I have for sure," Eala added.
While she acknowledged that a high tennis IQ is definitely her asset, the Filipina said there's still a long way to go.
"To call myself a great is a very long shot. I think I have a long way to go before being a great but I'm so happy that uh people are recognizing the potential that I have," she said.
The Filipina though gushed more upon hearing the reaction from 18-time Grand Slam champion Chris Evert.
"Incredible that Alex Eala still has anything left in her considering the teen has beaten 3 Grand Slam Champs," tweeted Evert during the Filipina's semifinal match.
"Oh I'm surprised that Chris Evert would even know who I am," Eala said on Power & Play. "But I think if there's one thing you can't underestimate about me, it's the fight that I have and that goes for any level of tournament. The fight I have on court, it goes a long way."
And it would certainly help the current world no. 75 as she starts her clay season--which is likely to include a direct berth to the French Open.
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