HERE COMES ALEX

Alex Eala’s journey from being a fringe player to becoming professional tennis’ newest sensation had reached another level of excitement as she bagged a coveted seed in the prestigious Wimbledon Championship that got underway on Monday at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in London.

From being at No. 35 in the Women’s Tennis Association ranking, the 21-year-old Filipina leapfrogged to No. 30 after a string of impressive performances in the Berlin Open, where she claimed the scalps of two top 10 players.

With that, Eala became the first Filipina netter to be on the upper bracket of the Wimbledon main draw. She also became the first local player to grab a Wimbledon seed after Filipino-American Treat Huey and Belarusian partner Max Mirnyi landed as second seed in the men’s double event in 2016.

It’s going to be Eala’s second stint in the main draw of the prestigious grass-court event.

Last year, Eala had a forgettable stint as she made a first-round exit following a 6-3, 2-6, 1-6 loss to Barbora Krejcikova of Czech Republic, who entered the match as the No. 16 seed.

Now, Eala is older, wiser and more confident after stunning world No. 2 Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan and No. 8 Elina Svitolina of Ukraine before she losing to No. 13 Linda Noskova of the Czech Republic in the semifinals of the Berlin Open last week.

Prior to that, she made it all the way to the Last 16 of the Queen’s Club Championship also in London. Although she fell short after losing to American powerhouse Iva Jovic, Eala still made a strong statement as she proved that she can stand her ground against the best players in the world on grass.

“Can’t begin to describe all the emotions I’ve experienced this week. My heart is full!” Eala said after completing her most impressive performance since a seminal finish in the WTA 500 Miami Open last year.

“I am forever grateful, Berlin. You are so special. Thank you!”

But her preparation for Wimbledon is not yet done.

Eala’s next stop will be the Bad Homburg Open in Germany, where she will join forces with seven-time Grand Slam champion Venus Williams.

The tandem of the rising star and the old guard will be tested right away as it battles Alexandra Osborne of Australia and Catherine Harrison of the United States on Tuesday in the Round of 16.

“I’m really excited. Venus Williams is such a trailblazer and continues to do so much and has done so much for the sport,” Eala said.

“I like to say that women’s tennis has been a trailblazer for women’s sports, and she is a big part of why that is.”

Eala was facing Elise Mertens of Belgium in the Round of 32 of the women’s singles event at press time.

Also competing in the Bad Homburg Open are Svitolina, No. 10 Karolina Muchova of the Czech Republic, No. 3 Iga Swiatek of Poland and No. 5 Mirra Andreeva of Russia.