By KRISTEL SATUMBAGA
Alex Eala may have become the first Filipina to reach this stage of a Grand Slam singles event, but the rising star isn’t dwelling too much on the milestone following her historic third-round victory at the Wimbledon Championships.
The 21-year-old knocked out defending champion Iga Swiatek, 7-6 (9), 6-2, late Saturday, July 4 (Philippine time) at the packed Centre Court, marking a dramatic turnaround from a year ago when she bowed out on the same court after falling to 2024 champion Barbora Krejcikova in the first round.
But for Eala, the history-making win is only another step in her ambitious Wimbledon campaign.
“I think it’s important for me to celebrate and enjoy victories like this. But once the next match gets closer and closer, my body feels like and I have that, I guess I would say, skill to lock back in,” the 29th seed said in her post-match interview.
“Obviously because I’m emotional does not mean I’m satisfied. Next round, let’s go,” she earlier said in an on-court interview.
P24.5 PRIZE
Standing between Eala and a place in the quarterfinals is 13th seed Jasmine Paolini, whom she will face in the fourth round on Monday, July 6, with Eala already assured of pocketing $413,000 (roughly P24.5million)
The two have met just once before, with Eala claiming an impressive 6-1, 7-6 (5) victory over the then-sixth-seeded Italian in the Round of 32 of the Dubai Tennis Championships last February.
Despite having that head-to-head record advantage, Eala remains wary of her world No. 17 opponent.
“It was not an easy match in Dubai for me and it will not be an easy match here, either,” said Eala. “Then again, every match is a different story, so I’m going to do my best to prepare for that one.”
Paolini, 30, cruised to the next round with a 6-1, 6-2 thrashing of Maria Sakkari in her bid to eclipse her best Grand Slam feat of a runner-up finish at the 2024 Wimbledon. She was also a 2024 French Open finalist to Swiatek, and finished in the fourth round of the Australian and US Open in the same year.
The Wimbledon is only Paolini’s second grass court event this year after exiting in the first round of the Eastbourne Open two weeks ago.
Eala, for her part, is enjoying her best season in grass so far, having won the Birmingham Classic title early last month and finishing in the semifinals of the Berlin Open few weeks ago.
Another victory for Eala would arrange her a quarterfinals match with the winner between qualifier Ashlyn Krueger and 12th seed Marta Kostyuk.
It would also match the best-ever singles finish by a Southeast Asian female player in the Grand Slam Open Era.
2022 champion Rybakina also out
Shortly before Swiatek’s exit, 2022 Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina was upset in the third round by Elise Mertens 7-6 (4), 6-1.
At No. 2, Rybakina is the highest seed on the women’s side to be eliminated. Her loss ensures that Aryna Sabalenka — who faces Naomi Osaka in the fourth round on Sunday — will keep her No. 1 ranking after the tournament.
Belgium’s Mertens is the No. 25 seed at Wimbledon, where she’s won two doubles titles. She will next face 21st-seeded Marie Bouzkova of the Czech Republic.
Keys, Fritz shine on 4th of July
In another upset, Madison Keys rallied to oust the sixth-seeded Anisimova 3-6, 6-2, 6-3 in an all-American contest on the 250th anniversary of U.S. independence.
The 26th-seeded Keys, the 2025 Australian Open champion, was asked how she’ll celebrate the U.S. holiday.
“I have no plans,” she told the Centre Court crowd after her victory. “When you’re not in the States, it’s just kind of another day.”
Keys will next play ninth-seeded Linda Noskova.
Ashlyn Krueger, another American, has come through qualifying to reach the fourth round. She beat Ukraine’s Daria Snigur 6-3, 6-2 and will face another Ukrainian — 12th-seeded Marta Kostyuk — for a spot in the quarterfinals.
The only American man to reach the last 16 is Taylor Fritz, who beat Lorenzo Sonego 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, 7-6 (5) on No. 2 Court. The sixth-seeded Fritz next faces Alexander Bublik, who beat American Frances Tiafoe in five sets. (With a report from AP)
