Alex Eala Reaches the Third Round at Wimbledon, a First for the Philippines

Alex Eala is through to the third round at Wimbledon. No Filipina has done that before.

The comeback

Eala lost the first set to Australia’s Maya Joint, 3-6, on Thursday, July 2. She turned the match around from there, taking the second set 6-2 and closing out the third 6-0. The match lasted one hour and 58 minutes, played in front of a crowd carrying Filipino flags.

“I really had to dig deep, especially after that first set,” Eala said on court afterward. She credited Joint’s strong start, coming off the Australian’s own win over Serena Williams earlier in the tournament.

A first for the Philippines

The win makes Eala the first Filipina to reach the third round at Wimbledon. She’s the tournament’s 29th seed this year and enters the match on a strong run of form on grass, having already won several tour-level matches this season heading into the Championships. Her first-round win came against Mexico’s Renata Zarazua, 6-1, 6-2.

Next up: Iga Świątek

Eala will face defending champion Iga Świątek in the third round. Świątek advanced with a straight-sets win over Karolína Plíšková. The two have met before. Eala beat Świątek during her run to the Miami semifinals last year, and Świątek won the rematch in Madrid a month later.

Whatever happens next, Eala already has a mark on the record books that stays with her.