Alex Eala will look to continue her dream run at Wimbledon when she takes on Jasmine Paolini in the fourth round.
The Filipina became the first from her country in history, man or woman, to reach the round of 16 at a Grand Slam after dethroning defending champion Iga Swiatek on Saturday.
Eala, a graduate of the Rafael Nadal Academy, earned a statement victory over the Pole, beating her in straight sets on Centre Court, 7-6, 6-2.
Alexandra Eala will finish 2026 ranked — in the world
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Her next assignment, Paolini, is a former Wimbledon finalist, and after a disappointing first half of the season, the Italian has performed well at the 2026 Championships so far.
In their first meeting earlier this year at the Dubai Tennis Championships, Eala came out on top, and former American player John Isner thinks the 21-year-old will triumph again in SW19.
John Isner reacts to Alex Eala’s victory over Iga Swiatek
“She is an absolute star, and it’s a signature win,” said Isner on the ‘Nothing Major‘ podcast.
“Probably her greatest win, considering the moment, taking out the defending champ on Centre Court with all of those 119 million people watching her. Huge moment.
“The match itself, I didn’t think it was that good. But she was just tougher. So what are you going to do? How often are you going to have a classic match, right? You need both players to play at their absolute best.
“That wasn’t the case in this one. She was tougher, especially in that first set tiebreaker and rolled through in the second set.
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“So it’s so much fun watching her play. I mean, she’s not big in stature. Obviously, we know that. But she’s so crafty out there.
“She’s got the WTA thigh wrap going, so like she’s like fighting through something. But she’s just, you know, toughing people out. It’s good to see.”
Asked if he thinks Eala will win against Paolini, Isner replied: “Yeah, I think she does.
“That’s a hard one to handicap because Paolini might be finding her form. That’s a tough one. There’ll be a lot of breaks in that match, that’s for sure.”
Jasmine Paolini’s difficult 2026 season on the WTA Tour
Prior to Wimbledon, Paolini, currently ranked 15th in the world, tallied a season win-loss record of 12-7.
Across Grand Slams and WTA 1000 competitions, the two highest levels in women’s tennis, Paolini has recorded just one fourth-round finish, which she managed at the Indian Wells Open.
She bowed out of the Australian Open in the third round and only made it to round two at Roland Garros.
Paolini’s Wimbledon campaign got off to a shaky start when handed a first-set bagel by Robin Montgomery in the first round.
But she fought back to overcome the American and went on to triumph in straight sets over both Viktorija Golubic and Maria Sakkari.
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