{"id":1790217,"date":"2026-02-24T15:45:30","date_gmt":"2026-02-24T12:45:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1790217"},"modified":"2026-02-24T15:45:30","modified_gmt":"2026-02-24T12:45:30","slug":"absolute-rock-star-alex-eala-named-the-biggest-draw-in-womens-tennis-over-sabalenka-and-gauff","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1790217","title":{"rendered":"&#8216;Absolute rock star&#8217; Alex Eala named the &#8216;biggest draw in women&#8217;s tennis&#8217; over Sabalenka and Gauff"},"content":{"rendered":"<article class=\"ps-article-content rounded-lg lg:mt-5 lg:border lg:border-card lg:bg-card lg:shadow-primary\">\n<header>\n<h1 class=\"py-4 text-xl font-normal text-title sm:text-2xl\">\u2018Absolute rock star\u2019 Alex Eala named the \u2018biggest draw in women\u2019s tennis\u2019 over Sabalenka and Gauff<\/h1>\n<div class=\"my-2 flex items-center justify-between\">\n<div class=\"flex items-center\">\n                        <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tennis365.com\/author\/ewan-west\" class=\"text-sm font-normal !text-author\"><br \/>\n                            Ewan West                        <\/a><br \/>\n                        <time class=\"ml-3 text-sm font-normal text-info md:ml-4\" datetime=\"24 Feb 2026 3:45 PM\" data-ps-date=\"24 Feb 2026 3:45 PM\" data-ps-datetime=\"1771947930\"><br \/>\n                            24 Feb 2026 3:45 PM                        <\/time>\n                    <\/div>\n<div class=\"hidden justify-end space-x-4 text-xl sm:flex sm:!opacity-100\">\n                        <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer\/sharer.php?u=https:\/\/www.tennis365.com\/tennis-news\/alex-eala-absolute-rock-star-popularity-bigger-aryna-sabalenka-coco-gauff\" class=\"!text-info hover:!text-brand\" aria-label=\"Share to facebook\"><\/p>\n<p>                        <\/a><br \/>\n                        <a 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target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/share.flipboard.com\/bookmarklet\/popout?v=2&amp;url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.tennis365.com%2Ftennis-news%2Falex-eala-absolute-rock-star-popularity-bigger-aryna-sabalenka-coco-gauff\" aria-label=\"Share to flipboard\"><\/p>\n<p>                        <\/a>\n                    <\/div>\n<div class=\"sm:hidden flex items-center space-x-5\">\n                        <a class=\"!text-share-icon hover:!text-share-icon-active flex items-center justify-center\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/google.com\/preferences\/source?q=tennis365.com\" aria-label=\"Follow Tennis365 on Google Search\"><\/p>\n<p>                        <\/a><br \/>\n                        <button id=\"t365-article-share-btn\" class=\"mr-2 hidden h-6 w-6 appearance-none border-none !text-share-icon outline-none hover:!text-share-icon-active sm:hidden\" data-title=\"\u2018Absolute rock star\u2019 Alex Eala named the \u2018biggest draw in women\u2019s tennis\u2019 over Sabalenka and Gauff\"><\/p>\n<p>                        <\/button>\n                    <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/header>\n<div class=\"-mx-3 sm:-mx-5 border-b border-page\"><\/div>\n<section>\n<div class=\"-mx-3 sm:-mx-5\">\n<figure class=\"aspect-h-9 aspect-w-16 relative\">\n                                        <img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1320\" height=\"742\" loading=\"eager\" class=\"w-full h-full object-cover object-center !my-0\" src=\"https:\/\/d2me2qg8dfiw8u.cloudfront.net\/content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Alex-Eala-roars-1320x742.jpg\" alt=\"Alex Eala at the Dubai Championships\">                <\/figure><figcaption class=\"flex items-center space-x-3 border-b border-mobile-caption px-3 lg:border-caption\">\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"my-1.5 break-words !text-xs !text-content\">\n                                Alex Eala roars in celebration                            <\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<div class=\"ciam-article-t365\">\n<p>Alex Eala has been described as an \u201cabsolute rock star\u201d and \u201cthe biggest draw in women\u2019s tennis\u201d ahead of Aryna Sabalenka and Coco Gauff by former ATP Tour stars.<\/p>\n<p>The 20-year-old is a trailblazer for tennis in the Philippines, and she is already firmly established as her nation\u2019s most accomplished player of all time.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.tennis365.com\/tag\/alex-eala\">Eala<\/a> has received massive support from her compatriots in 2026, with her matches at the Australian Open, her home event in Manila, and the Dubai Championships drawing particularly huge crowds.<\/p>\n<p>The Filipina climbed to a new career-high WTA ranking of world No 31 on Monday after her run to the quarter-finals at the WTA 1000 in Dubai.<\/p>\n<p>On the latest episode of the Nothing Major podcast, former world No 11 Sam Querrey posed a big question about Eala\u2019s popularity to fellow retired American players Steve Johnson and John Isner.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMy question to you guys is, on the women\u2019s side, is Eala the biggest draw in women\u2019s tennis right now? Is she bigger than Sabalenka? Is she bigger than Coco?,\u201d asked Querrey.<\/p>\n<p>Johnson, a former world No 21, replied: \u201cYes. Dude, it\u2019s crazy. She\u2019s having the same effect that [Joao] Fonseca was having on the men\u2019s side last year in Miami.<\/p>\n<h2>WTA Tour News<\/h2>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.tennis365.com\/wta-tour\/amazing-alex-eala-praise-continues-jessica-pegula-verdict-filipino-fans\"><strong>\u2018Amazing\u2019 Alex Eala praise continues as Jessica Pegula shares her verdict on Filipino fans<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.tennis365.com\/tennis-news\/wta-rankings-iga-swiatek-no-2-jessica-pegula-coco-gauff-heels-alex-eala-paula-badosa-15\"><strong>WTA Rankings: Swiatek holds onto No 2, Pegula on Gauff\u2019s heels, Eala +16, Badosa -15<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Want more from Tennis365? Add us as <a rel=\"noopener nofollow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/preferences\/source?q=tennis365.com\" target=\"_blank\">a preferred source on Google to your favourites list<\/a> for tennis coverage you can trust.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>\u201cEvery court\u2026 Australia, the court was standing room only. Then Dubai, standing room only. It\u2019s insane. It\u2019s massive.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe crowds she\u2019s getting right now, all over the world, are insane. The Doha crowds were insane for her last week. Insane.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Former world No 8 John Isner gave his verdict and highlighted the size of the market in the Philippines.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s everywhere. Absolutely. It\u2019s a huge market. I think a lot of people underestimated how big that market is,\u201d Isner said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThey finally have a star on the women\u2019s side of the game. It would be the same if they had a men\u2019s star as well. There are some huge markets with untapped potential. They just need players to emerge and make a name for themselves.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd that\u2019s what Alex has done so far. So she\u2019s definitely one to watch, obviously because she\u2019s so good, but just for the atmosphere. You want to tune into her matches just to see what it\u2019s like on the court.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Querrey added:\u00a0\u201cShe\u2019s already been on the cover of Vogue and she\u2019s playing well right now too. If she wins a Slam, it would be one of the biggest things in the world.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShe was unknown until Miami last year. I think we can all kind of agree on that. But she is just like an absolute rock star. Even though she\u2019s not top 10 in the world, when she gets to these tournaments now, she has to play on centre court.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>READ NEXT: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tennis365.com\/tennis-features\/wta-indian-wells-entry-list-2026\">WTA Indian Wells 2026 Entry List: Sabalenka, Swiatek, Rybakina, Gauff star; will Eala be seeded?<\/a><br \/>\n<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/article>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>\u2018Absolute rock star\u2019 Alex Eala named the \u2018biggest draw in women\u2019s tennis\u2019 over Sabalenka and Gauff Ewan West 24 Feb 2026 3:45 PM Alex Eala roars in celebration Alex Eala has been described as an \u201cabsolute rock star\u201d and \u201cthe biggest draw in women\u2019s tennis\u201d ahead of Aryna Sabalenka and Coco Gauff by former ATP [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[226,249],"class_list":["post-1790217","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-crawlmanager","tag-tennis365-com"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1790217","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1790217"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1790217\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1790217"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1790217"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1790217"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}