Seven-time Grand Slam champion Venus Williams has nothing but praise for Alex Eala as the Filipina gets ready for the Wimbledon Championships which begins Tuesday at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in London.

Williams, 46, said teaming up with the 21-year-old Eala was a great experience and wished they had more time to develop their chemistry during the Bad Homburg Open in Germany.

Eala, who is seeded No. 29 in the third Grand Slam of the year, will face world No. 76 Renata Zarazúa of Mexico in the first round of the women’s singles, while Williams will join forces with her sister, Serena, in the doubles.

“She’s great! Her parents are great. I got to meet them, too. Overall, they seem to be very nice humans, which helps you be better tennis players,” Williams said.

“She’s very competitive on the court. I think we were a great team — we just needed a little more time together. We never even got the chance to practice before we played the doubles. I hope we get the chance to team back up again.”

Eala, a Rafael Nadal Academy graduate, continues to work hard as she trains with world No. 51 Zeynep Sönmez of Turkey and women’s doubles partner Nikola Bartunkova of the Czech Republic.

Former tennis player and 1997 Wimbledon quarterfinalist Greg Rusedski sees Eala winning her opening-round assignment to set up a potential dream match against Serena Williams in the second round.

“I think Serena’s going to get through Maya Joint and I think Eala’s going to win her opener as well, so that’s going to be Serena and Eala in the second round. And that’s going to be another Centre Court matchup,” Rusedski said.

Eala has yet to win a match at Wimbledon since making her debut last year, giving the Filipina ace even more motivation.

But getting past Zarazúa will be easier said than done as the 28-year-old Mexican defeated Eala in the quarterfinals of the 2024 Cary Tennis Classic in the United States.

Eala, however, has improved significantly since that defeat. She broke through at the Miami Open in 2025, where she reached the semifinals, a run that propelled her into the WTA Top 100. She has continued her steady climb up the rankings ever since.

At the Berlin Tennis Open, Eala scored impressive victories over world No. 2 Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan, 7-5, 6-4, and world No. 8 Elina Svitolina of Ukraine, 6-3, 6-4, establishing herself as a legitimate threat entering Wimbledon.

Eala will also be extra motivated as she competes in her favorite Grand Slam.