Eala named co-Athlete of the Year with Yulo

BECOMING the country’s Athlete of the Year is just the beginning for world tennis rising star Alexandra “Alex” Eala.

“This is just the beginning,” beamed Ms. Eala in a short video speech while in the Middle East for the WTA Tour during the Philippine Sportswriters Association (PSA) Awards Night on Monday at the Diamond Hotel.

“This award means so much to me because it reflects on how far tennis and my sports has come in our country. Thank you so much.”

Ms. Eala was named the PSA co-Athlete of the Year with Paris Olympics double-gold medalist Carlos Yulo, who copped crowns once again in the Asian Artistic Gymnastics Championships and the FIG Artistic Gymnastics World Championships last year.

The 20-year-old, for her part, notched a bevy of firsts for Philippine tennis including becoming the first Filipina player to enter the world’s Top 50 rankings.

She’s also the first Filipina WTA champion and first Filipina to qualify for all four Grand Slam main draws on top of inspiring the country’s first hosting of a WTA 125 event in history.

In December, Ms. Eala became the first Filipina gold medalist in the SEA Games tennis in more than two decades.

“I’m so honored to be named the PSA Athlete of the Year alongside Carlos Yulo. Congratulations Carlos, isang malaking karangalan makasama ka sa parangal na ito,” added Ms. Eala.

Ms. Eala is playing at the WTA 1000 Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships, awaiting a second-round clash against world No. 8 Jasmine Paolini of Italy as BusinessWorld went to press.

Ms. Eala earned a shot at the 30-year-old Ms. Paolini, 2024 Olympic doubles gold medalist with Sara Errani, after an injury to American foe Hailey Baptiste, who retired leading 1-0 in the second set due to abdominal pain.

The lefty ace took a 6-4 win in the first set behind a 3-1 blast from a close 3-all score.

Ms. Eala, assured of $26,000 and 65 points, is out to make it up in Dubai after a first-round exit in the WTA 1000 Qatar Open last week that dragged her down to No. 47 in the WTA rankings from No. 40.

Prior to that, Ms. Eala had a string of playoff finishes in the WTA 250 ASB Classic in New Zealand, WTA 125 Philippine Women’s Open, her first home tourney, and the WTA 500 Abu Dhabi Open.

She also made appearances in all four major main draws after a debut in the Australian Open last month in Melbourne, where she netted an exhibition crown in the Kooyong Classic as well. — John Bryan Ulanday