"She could be among the best in the world": Toni Nadal praises Alexandra Eala after incredible run at Miami Open

Toni Nadal, uncle of the former world number one Rafael Nadal, has praised the Philippines’ young tennis sensation, Alexandra Eala. The 19-year-old was the real surprise package during the recently concluded Miami Open. Her journey ended after she lost in the semifinal to the 2024 US Open runner-up, America’s Jessica Pegula, with a score of 7-6, 5-7, 6-3.

During her way to the semifinal, Eala defeated three Grand Slam winners. She got the better of the reigning world number two, Poland’s Iga Swiatek, in the quarterfinal in straight sets with a score of 6-2, 7-5. In the third round, the youngster defeated the 2025 Australian Open champion Madison Keys in straight sets with a score of 6-4, 6-2. In the second round, Eala secured another straight-set win against the 2017 French Open winner Latvia’s Jeļena Ostapenko with a score of 7-6, 7-5.

Eala is the product of Rafa Nadal Academy. At her graduation, current world number two Iga Swiatek appeared as the special guest. Toni, who is the uncle of the former world number one Rafael, who also worked as one of the coaches at the academy, has recently spoken to Spanish media outlet Marca, as quoted by Tennis 365, where she praised the attitude of Eala while working at the academy. Toni stated that he never heard any complaints about the youngster. Toni also believes that Eala has the potential to become one of the ‘best’ in the world.

“For the academy and for me in particular, it’s a huge success,” he said. “She’s the girl who’s been with us the longest. In all this time, there’s never been a single complaint from anyone, neither from her nor from her family. She’s shown she has great potential because it’s not easy to beat the world’s No 2 and No 5 in the same tournament. Once she gets her game right, she could be among the best in the world. She stood up to Swiatek and didn’t back down. Only at one point, at 2-0 in the second set, was she a little hesitant and needed to be more aggressive with her serve.”