In-form Alex Eala not letting guard down in Wimbledon return

MANILA, Philippines — Alex Eala has been enjoying a strong grass court season with nine wins against three losses only.

In the middle of one of the best stretches in her career, Eala went on a perfect run to capture the 125 Birmingham Open title to start the month of June.

On top of that, Eala reached the 500 Berlin Open semifinals in a tear that saw her defeat newly-minted Queen's Club champ Donna Vekic in the first round, and stun world No. 2 Elena Rybakina in the second as well as No. 8 Elina Svitolina in the third.

That deep run enabled Eala to be seeded at No. 29 this Wimbledon Championships, becoming the first Filipino seeded singles player in a Grand Slam.

"Being seeded is something I'm really proud of. Its kind of like, 'Wow, I'm seeded at Wimbledon'," said Eala to the media Monday ahead of her first round clash against Mexican Renata Zarazua in Wimbledon.

"Nonetheless, it can get kind of sentimental just because, you know, you look back at my whole journey, who would have thought that at 21 I’d be seeded at Wimbledon."

Still, Eala is aware that anything can happen and the possibility of falling to a lower-ranked player in world No. 76 Zarazua is far from a stretch.

"In terms of on court, like, the ball doesn't know if you're seeded or not, right? So, yeah, that's how I would put it," said Eala.

"There are no handouts here. So, every match is going to be difficult. I'm super focused. I think I would say I'm playing well. I'm feeling confident. I think I've been putting in the work, that's for sure. But then again it’s a Slam, everyone's out to get you . So I'm ready."

Eala, who faces Zarazua on Tuesday at 8:50 p.m. in Manila, is out to beat anyone on her path to the championship but so are the other players.

All she could do is give her best.

"I definitely think you need to have the mindset, especially in the Slam, that you can beat anyone. But then you also need to remember that anyone can beat you. So it really goes both ways," she said.

"I like to say that tennis is a gladiator sport, right? So, I think I'm coming into Wimbledon playing well. So the best I can do is go out there, give my all, and see where that takes."

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