"I have to be proud of what I’ve achieved this week" - Alexandra Eala focuses on positives following dream Wimbledon campaign coming to an end

The magical Wimbledon journey has come to an end for Alexandra Eala. She lost out to Jasmine Paolini in a thrilling 6-4, 4-6, 6-3 contest on Centre Court in the last-16 of the Grand Slam tournament.

After taking down the reigning champion, the Filipina was brimming with confidence as a whole nation had her back. Her form on grass this year has been brilliant, following from last year where she broke new ground with her first ever WTA final at Eastbourne.

She has made the next step at Grand Slam level. Previously with just one Grand Slam win under her belt, she smashed that tally following wins over Renata Zarazua and Maya Joint with a task against Swiatek up next. She took down the reigning champion in a brilliant performance, surviving set points before storming clear in an emotional victory.

Her reward was a contest against the 2024 finalist Paolini. This turned out to be a step too far with the Italian finding her best tennis once more following a barren spell on court. She took the first set before Eala fought her way back into contention. A final set was treated for all the fans watching on, including eight-time champion Roger Federer, with Paolini winning the final three games of the match to seal glory and a first quarter-final at Grand Slam level since reaching the final back in 2024.

Eala could only leave SW19 with pride, reflecting in her press conference. "It was a really challenging match today," she began. "I think Jasmine played great. I gave everything that I could. I did everything that I could do today, so I’m proud of that. I have to be proud of what I’ve achieved this week. Leaving with positive thoughts."

While a loss is always a negative way to end a campaign, the positives far out way those thoughts. "There are so many positives," Eala admitted. "Well, one I think is how I’ve handled pressure. I mean, there’s pressure every week, right? Of course, the more you want to win, I think the more kind of like pressure goes along with that. I’m happy with how I faced it head on. I think I kept cool when I needed to control my emotions. Overall, performed the best that I could on the day."

It also gives her a huge boost that she can perform at this level in front of a huge crowd on the big stage, boding well for the upcoming North American swing.

"I think this week in general will add to my confidence. I mean, if this week doesn’t… It’s been one of my best results, right? Of course, it will add confidence. I think it’s important that every match I played this week, and every match that I play, I go in with the self-esteem and the thought that I’m able to win. I don’t think that necessarily because of one week or the other that that will change."

While Swiatek's level did plummet in the second set of the third tie, Eala's rose magnificently. She capitalised on her opponent's slump and raced away to seal a brilliant win. She could not do the same against Paolini and was asked to compare performances.

"Of course there are things that I would have liked to do differently. But in the end, I think that’s just tennis," she stated. "That’s also what’s beautiful about tennis, is that every match, it’s different in a sense. You’re always finding solutions, the opponent is always finding ways to make you uncomfortable. I think Jasmine did that pretty well today. She really went for her shots. She definitely made me feel uncomfortable in certain moments of the match."

She singled out her serve as one of the aspects of her game that did not live up to its standards. "I think my serve was not as good today as maybe other matches. But I have days like that. Everyone has days where they don’t play their best tennis. I understand that’s part of the job. I don’t think I’m going to be playing the best tennis of my life every single day. I don’t expect that. With that being said, I’m really proud of how I handled things. I think I just have to kind of move forward and continue with my progress."

There was also a lot of emotions following that Swiatek match. She was pictured as a teary figure when completing her speech and would need to compose herself ahead of another massive fixture.

"I did have to manage the emotions. I think that’s also the beauty of kind of like letting all the emotions out after, when you feel them, is that you’re able to have that moment. It’s also part of professionalism. This is not the first time I’ve had a huge win, and then I’ve had to play, like, two days after."

This did not affect her performance or preparation. "I think I prepared pretty well for this match. There are so many different factors to today that contributed to the result of why it happened. I think on that aspect, I did pretty well. Yesterday I was really focused on my preparation for today. Now that I guess I’m out of the tournament, after processing the loss, then maybe I will feel those emotions again."

Being just 21-years-old, Eala has a huge potential in this sport. Her progress has been followed by many as she assesses how far away she is from breaking into the elite and what is so tricky about this process.

"Like you said, it comes down to details," she said. "It’s very fine, it’s very fine details. With tennis and matches that are tight, it sometimes can depend on one point or two. I think it’s how you manage yourself during those moments. Looking back, for example, I have one point, and did I stick with my game, did I stick with the game plan, did I do everything I could at that moment? I think that’s all you can really do is do your best, right?

"There are so many external factors that you cannot control. You cannot control how she plays. You cannot control if there’s wind. You cannot control if it’s super hot or it’s super cold. The only thing I can control is how I approach those situations. If I’m able to approach them with bravery, with a steady mind and with intensity, then I’m able to look back and feel no regret."