Alexandra Eala has been praised for many things over the last year or so, and all with good reason.
After all, both on and off the court, her rise and the way she has handled it has been exceptional.
At just 21 years of age, she exhibits incredible maturity, happy to shoulder the burden of an entire nation and more, while still trying to win as many matches as possible.
It’s impressive to think how she has grown from a plucky underdog to a genuine contender in just 12 months, and it really feels like this US Open could be the platform from which she reaches an even greater heights.
Speaking on Tennis Channel, both Jim Courier and Lindsay Davenport had nothing but praise for Alexandra Eala, and interestingly, both highlighted different things they appreciate about her.
Jim Courier and Lindsay Davenport praise Alex Eala at the US Open
Courier began by lauding her ability to deal with such newfound fame.
He argued: “It’s incredible. When your life changes like this, and granted, she hasn’t won a big title yet, it will get even more exponentially, from a popularity standpoint, bigger for her should she do that, and she might someday, but even without that, she is transforming the culture of tennis, certainly, in her country, and bringing more fans under the tent.
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“And I’ve got to tell you, if I’m the USTA, I would be so pumped if Eala makes the third round to play Iva Jovic, the young American who is equally impressive when you hear her speak.
“That would be a real showcase for not just the future of women’s tennis, but I think just the young present”
Meanwhile, Davenport offered a more analytic outlook on her game, hailing her return of serve as one of the best on the WTA Tour.
She insisted: “Yeah, the mentality for the return is insane. She loves to be right on that baseline or inside the baseline.
“And last night, she was almost three feet inside the baseline to return the Stoiana serve. It worked okay last match. Stoiana’s first serve averaged at 101, the second serve down to about 89, 90 miles per hour, so Eala has some time.
“We’ll see if Eala gets to a match where she plays one of the big servers. Does she feel comfortable moving that around? Because right now, with the way Gauff’s serving, averaging 120 out there, that’s a tough position to stand.”
Eala has been praising the US Open crowd already, with New York boasting a huge Filipino community which has already turned out for her in huge numbers.
Alex Eala faces awkward test next at the US Open against Oleksandra Oliynykova
Having made light work of the American qualifier Mary Stoiana, Eala’s next US Open opponent poses a stern test.
After all, she is due to face the unorthodox Oleksandra Oliynykova, who actually leads their head-to-head, having won their only ever meeting against one another earlier this year.
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Discussing the prospect of facing the Ukrainian, and recounting that clash in Strasbourg, Eala recalled: “Yes, it was a really good match. I mean, very intense, quite tight.
“I think looking back at that match, there are a lot of things that I could have done better and I think I’ve been working on it since then, it’s been a couple months. I think I’ve developed a lot in [those] months.”
She finished by reaffirming her staunch mindset: “All I can do is come into that match with the same mindset as today, the same mindset, or even better than the mindset I’ve been having these past couple of weeks, and try to do my best.”
