July 7, 2026
MANILA – Alex Eala’s golden run at Wimbledon hit the end of the road on Monday night.
Eala went down swinging before falling to Italian world No. 13 and former finalist Jasmine Paolini, 4-6, 6-4, 3-6, in the round of 16 in front of a star-studded crowd at Centre Court that included Roger Federer in the royal box.
The loss did not diminish Eala’s historic campaign on tennis’ most grandiose stage.
In another trail-blazing bid, the 21-year-old Eala became the first Filipino to reach the round of 16 in a Grand Slam singles tournament after she unseated defending champion Iga Swiatek in straight sets on Saturday.
The 30-year-old Paolini, a former world No. 4, evened the score against Eala after losing to the Filipino ace in the Dubai Tennis Championships round of 32 last February.
Paolini, who made the All England Club final two years ago, booked a spot in the quarterfinals against Ukraine’s Marta Kostyuk set Wednesday.
Federer, who holds the men’s record with eight singles titles, made an apperance at Wimbledon on the 18th anniversary of his epic five-set final against great rival Rafael Nadal in 2008.