By MARK REY MONTEJO
Before teaming up with Venus Williams and going up against some of the sport’s top-ranked players before thousands of Filipino fans, Alex Eala was simply a young girl watching her older brother Miko hone his game on little and old court.
The four-year-old Alex, who had a “ruffled socks, light up shoes and chubby cheeks”, then had the courage to pick up the racket and join Miko on the court as they were guided by their late grandfather Roberto “Bobby” Maniego together with coach Karl Santamaria. Their parents Mike and Rizza, a former national team swimmer, were also there beaming with pride on the sidelines.
Santamaria, however, spent only two years guiding the Ealas but continued to give “Lolo Bobby” technical guidance and training advice.
“Yeah, my grandpa was a very big part of my life and of my early career. He was my coach ever since I started up until I moved to Spain,” said Eala during a campaign in the inaugural WTA 125 Philippine Women’s Open inside the fabled Rizal Memorial Sports Complex in Manila.
“And I think about him every once in a while when I have good results, and I guess that happened quite often last year, which is a good thing,” she added. “But he’s always been so supportive, and he’s always sacrificed a lot for me, and even when I wasn’t at this level or famous or anything like that, he was there, showed up every day.”
“And I think that just reflects on how much love he has for me and the family.”
Their unwavering presence, day in and day out, for Miko and Alex, who trained together almost every day, eventually bore fruit.
This, after the Eala siblings thrived and won several age-group competitions here and on foreign soil that was highlighted by Alex’s supremacy at Les Petits As – a 12-14 junior meet held in Tarbes, Frances, while Miko surged in the ITF junior rankings.
Their feat ultimately earned them a scholarship at the Rafa Nadal Academy, an institution founded by no less than men’s tennis legend Rafael Nadal in Mallorca, Spain.
While in Mallorca, Miko and Alex gradually improved as they eagerly worked on their respective assignments, and it further polished their performance with the former graduating first in 2020 while the now Filipina tennis ace followed suit in 2023.
There, Nadal, himself, and former No. 1 Iga Swiatek of Poland graced the graduation ceremony.
Despite going their separate ways, with Miko moving to the United States to pursue his education and tennis career as a member of the Penn State University men’s tennis team, while Eala remains based in Spain, the bond between the siblings has never faded.
That’s for sure.
Aside from Maria Sharapova, Eala revealed that Miko was also her idol growing up, expressing that her older brother was someone who she tried to copy and wanted to pursue greatness in the ultra-competitive world of tennis.
And with hard work and resiliency fueled by sheer will, Eala, now ranked No. 20 in the world, became of the fast-rising netters on the circuit, perhaps she even surpassed the lofty expectations of her fellow Filipinos after racking up a string of firsts in her résume – both for herself and the country – alongside a myriad of accolades with her first WTA Tour title at the top of her already glittering career.
Also, Eala’s beauty queen-like answers and unmistakable “Morena” charm have also helped expand her fan base well beyond the Philippines.
“There are moments when it’s heavy, there are moments when it’s fun… at the end of the day, I am also aware that it’s a crazy experience [and] I’m just trying to take it all in,” said Eala in pre-tournament presser of the ongoing WTA 1000 Cincinnati Open in Mason, Ohio.
Alex became an achiever in women’s professional tennis, while Miko, who stepped away from the hard court, turned out to be successful too in the corporate world, and just recently he was promoted as a consultant at Nae, a powerhouse telecommunications and digital transformation consulting firm based in Barcelona, Spain.
Before Alex exchanged serves with some of the sport’s current superstars, there was her older brother Miko, who was by her side during her humble beginnings in tennis.
And it is safe to say the obvious that Miko played a significant role in shaping Alex’s tennis career.
