Alexandra Eala wins WTA Star of the Swing after historic grass-court season

Alexandra Eala wins WTA Star of the Swing after historic grass-court season

Alexandra Eala has been named the WTA's Star of the Swing for the 2026 grass-court season, claiming nearly 90% of the fan vote after a remarkable five-week stretch that transformed her career trajectory. The 21-year-old Filipino tennis player finished well ahead of 2026 Wimbledon champion Linda Noskova and runner-up Karolina Muchova in the voting.

Birmingham and Berlin breakthroughs

Eala's impressive grass-court campaign began at the Lexus Birmingham Open, where she navigated through rain delays to capture her second WTA 125 title. The victory provided momentum heading into the prestigious WTA 500 event in Berlin, where she produced one of the season's most impressive performances.

At the Berlin Open, Eala posted consecutive victories over world No. 2 Elena Rybakina and No. 8 Elina Svitolina before advancing to the semifinals. The back-to-back wins over top-10 opponents demonstrated her growing confidence on grass courts, a surface where she had already shown promise with a run to her first WTA Tour final at Eastbourne in June 2025.

Historic Wimbledon run

Her most memorable moment came at Wimbledon, where the No. 29 seed made history as the first Filipino singles player in the Open Era to reach the second week of a Grand Slam. Eala's third-round victory over defending champion Iga Swiatek on Centre Court stands as one of the tournament's biggest upsets. She defeated the Polish star 7-6(9), 6-2, highlighted by a spectacular diving shot that quickly went viral on social media.

The victory over Swiatek held particular significance as it marked the second time Eala had defeated the Grand Slam champion, having previously beaten her during a semifinal run at the 2025 Miami Open. That breakthrough performance saw Eala become the first Filipino player to reach a WTA 1000 semifinal and crack the top 100 in the rankings.

Eala's Wimbledon run ended in the Round of 16 with a three-set loss to Jasmine Paolini, but her overall grass-court performance was exceptional. She compiled a 12-4 win-loss record during the five-week stretch, earning her the WTA's fan-voted honor and climbing to a career-high No. 28 in the rankings.

Journey from childhood to professional success

The Filipino star's journey to professional tennis success began with her grandfather, who coached her from age 3.5 to 13. She then earned a scholarship to the Rafael Nadal Academy in Mallorca, Spain, joining the prestigious facility in 2018 and graduating in 2023. Her development continued with a 2022 US Open girls' singles title, making her the first Filipino player to win a junior Grand Slam singles crown.

In August 2025, Eala broke another barrier by becoming the first player from the Philippines in the Open Era to win a Grand Slam main-draw match, defeating 14th seed Clara Tauson 6-3, 2-6, 7-6(11) in the first round of the US Open.

Looking ahead to hard-court season

Eala will now shift her focus to the hard-court season. She is scheduled to compete in singles at the Mubadala Citi DC Open in Washington, D.C., beginning July 27, where she will also partner with tennis legend Venus Williams in doubles competition. Following the DC Open, she will feature in the WTA 1000 events in Toronto and Cincinnati before heading to New York for the US Open.