PARIS, France (AFP) — Alexandra Eala and Janice Tjen have taken different routes to the women’s top 40, but both began their journeys from a region that is rarely on the tennis map.
In January, Eala, who turns 21 the day before Roland Garros starts, became the first player from the Philippines to break into the top 50.
Tjen turned 24 earlier in May. When she entered the top 40 in February, she became the highest-ranked Indonesian woman since Yayuk Basuki, who reached the top 20 in 1997 and 1998.
While their far-flung countries are more than 1,500 kilometers apart, they share a maritime border. The impact of the sometime doubles partners, not only on the court but in the stands, has brought them the nickname “SEA-sters.”
The huge Filipino expat population flock to see their first tennis star everywhere she plays.
“The start of the season is when I seriously noticed that people were really coming, they were buying tickets, they were taking time out of their day. It was like, wow,” world No. 38 Eala told the Served website.
She added she had been a “little bit in denial” about her popularity.
“After I broke that barrier of not accepting, thinking, ‘I don’t think I’m really famous’, every week they just kept coming, so I was, ‘Okay, you have to accept it, absorb it, it’s here, it’s a really good position.’”
Her opponents notice.
“I love that she has such an incredible fan base. I’ve seen the atmosphere. It’s amazing,” American Amanda Anisimova said in Dubai.
Yet, Eala is cautious.
“I want to give back all the support they give me, but my first obligation is to myself,” she told the Punto de Break website.
“I try to find the healthiest way to deal with all of this, because I feel like many things could go wrong... It’s all about balance.”
Representing a nation of 288 million, 41st-ranked Tjen is also proving a draw.
“I don’t think too much about it,” she told the Times of India ahead of a Billie Jean King Cup match in Delhi in April.
“I know that as long as I keep working hard and giving my best, I always have Indonesia behind me. That’s something I’m proud of.”
Two Thai women, Lanlana Tararudee and Mananchaya Sawangkaew are also hovering around the top 100.
“I’m super, super proud to be part of this group. And these are girls that I grew up with,” Eala said.
“I think Southeast Asia has its own little charm. We have certain humor that’s very similar, maybe cultural things that we share. There’s definitely that shared sense of pride for my region.”
Eala left home aged 12 to join the Rafael Nadal Academy in Mallorca. She won the US Open junior singles in 2022.
After breaking into the top 50 last season, she became the first person to hit with Nadal since his retirement over a year earlier.
“It was crazy,” Eala told The National. “It was my first time ever hitting with him and I was so nervous and it was definitely physically demanding for me.”
