Eala herself has seen a noticeable shift in the Philippines, where more people are picking up racquets, fighting for court time, and still learning the proper rules. “You have the hardcore sports fans, the girlies who like to dress up, the kids who are super excited to play with their friends—they’re realizing it’s a sport for everyone,” she says.
Following her historic run to the round of 16 at Wimbledon this summer, Eala received a hero’s welcome back home in Manila, with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. even hosting a formal reception for her at Malacañang Palace—something that Eala said she’d never even imagined when she was dreaming big tennis dreams as a kid. “Just being at the presidential palace—or seeing the people who came to greet me at the airport!” she says, incredulous, before adding with a laugh: “I had a meet-and-greet at the mall! I feel like the meet-and-greet at the mall is a very canonical Filipino celebrity experience.”
The attention has meant that she’s had to rethink how she moves around Manila—“especially if I come home straight after these kinds of milestones. It’s quite uncharted territory for me,” she adds. “It’s a learning process.” During her last visit, she relied on a security detail to escort her to work obligations. Otherwise, “I literally just stayed at home,” she says. “Even going to the coffee shop with my dad was a wild experience—people were just all over [us].”
At the end of the day, Eala insists that she’s just like any other young girl figuring out her own sense of style and identity. Like most Gen-Zers, she’s pretty chronically online, spending a bit too much free time going down YouTube rabbit holes, while her everyday playlist features an eclectic mix of Olivia Rodrigo, Olivia Dean, Bad Bunny, Raye, Royal Otis, The 1975, Young Miko, Sombr, Sienna Spiro, Doja Cat, Daniel Caesar, and Rosalía.
Over the past year, though, Eala has made a concerted effort to build a fuller life off the court. She’s been very intentional about forming friendships on the tour and now counts fellow players Eva Lys, Iva Jovic, Vicky Mboko, and Zeynep Sonmez among her closest confidantes.
Having a life away from the sport has also allowed Eala to get better at handling all of the noise surrounding her ascent. “I know what it takes to stay where I am,” she says, matter-of-factly. “I know I can tell myself the hard truth: If you don’t meet the standard, you’re not going to be here. So all this love and all this support that I’m getting doesn’t blind me from that.”
And while she is gradually adjusting her position in the sport from hunter to hunted, Eala actually feels hungrier than ever to continue breaking the ceiling above her. “I don’t think you stop hunting even when you’re number-one in the world,” she says, and then adds, with a laugh: “If I actually get to number one, I can tell you. But I don’t think the hunt ever stops.”
