Pride was the prevailing emotion for 19-year-old tennis star Alex Eala after reaching the semifinals of the Miami Open.
There were a lot of emotions running through Alex Eala after she went on a blistering run to the semifinals of the Miami Open late last month which has since propelled her to international stardom, and more importantly, the Top 75 in the WTA rankings.
But the 19-year-old had one dominant emotion through all of it — and that was having more pride and confidence in herself.
Being able to see her hard work pay off, Eala was just left in awe of how things transpired in the WTA 1000 tournament.
“It's a bit hard to swallow because there are such big wins. Yeah. But I'm super proud. I think that's the word. I'm proud of myself. And just to be able to say that I'm in the top 100, top 75, to be able to say that I have top five wins is very surreal to me,” said Eala in an online press conference with Philippine media on Tuesday.
“That mentality for the next match doesn't just go on during the tournament. As I said, the work isn't done. And I have goals to look forward to and tournaments to look forward to.”
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Among the biggest ones are more WTA 1000 tournaments, with the Madrid Open up next for her. But more importantly, there will be Grand Slam main draws in Eala’s near future, starting with Roland Garros.
[ALSO READ: Alex Eala set to make Grand Slam debut as pro, slated for main draw in French Open]
As she faces more opponents higher up in the rankings, the 19-year-old will bring along her biggest learnings from Miami, where she nabbed wins over Top 5 players Madison Keys and Iga Swiatek.
With still a whole lot ahead of her, Eala hopes to continue pushing up the ladder.
“For me, the biggest learning is that even the top players have weaknesses and they're not perfect. Of course, when you see that they've won so many things. And of course, it can depend on what kind of moment they're in their career. But there's always a way,” said Eala.
“There's always a point to push. And if I believe in myself, then I know that I'm able to push those points.” she added.
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Eala is currently ranked world no. 73 in the edition of the WTA rankings released on Monday. She plays next at the Oeiras Ladies Open, a WTA 125 tournament, in Portugal beginning next week.
The 19-year-old is looking for her first-ever title in the WTA tour.