January 23, 2026
MANILA – Alex Eala received enormous crowd support from Filipinos at Australian Open as she made her main draw debut at Melbourne Park.
The 20-year-old Eala was grateful for the Filipino fans who packed Court 6 and never stopped cheering, even after she lost momentum following a strong start and bowed out with a 6-0, 3-6, 2-6 loss to American Alycia Parks on Monday.
READ: Despite loss, Alex Eala has ‘heartwarming’ Australian Open debut
However, the Filipinos were called out by the umpire several times for making noise during rallies, with Parks even complaining about the crowd.
Former national team coach Karl Santamaria, who previously worked with Eala’s first coach and grandfather, “Lolo Bob,” and is now based in Australia, sat beside Filipino fans and helped educate them on tennis spectator etiquette.
Santamaria, who handled the likes of Clarice Patrimonio and Francis Casey Alcantara and tennis teams from University of Santo Tomas and National University, understands the Filipinos’ passion for sports but hopes fans will also learn to stay quiet during play and applaud respectfully after points.
“The Filipino crowd is loud. I could understand that. But [Filipino] tennis fans are still in their infancy, I would say. Tennis is not like basketball or boxing or soccer where you can scream anytime you want. There is tennis etiquette. You need to understand the flow of the game—when you can cheer, when you can make a sound, and when you should not,” Santamaria told the Inquirer.
READ: Alex Eala stays positive after Australian Open 2026 exit
“As a tennis coach, I understand that if you’re a player, it’s really distracting if you hear sounds in the middle of the rally. Your concentration should be on the ball and the shot. Any little sound that fans think won’t matter, the players will hear it because it’s quiet during rallies. The fans, in their eagerness to cheer, were waiting for the sound to die down so they could cheer together. Unfortunately, that was the time Alex was serving. There were many points where it worked the other way. I think Alex was the one distracted.”
Bigger venue
Santamaria clarified that the issue was pure overzealousness and not bullying, but he believes organizers should have anticipated the massive crowd Eala would draw.
“Of course, there are shortcomings of the Filipino crowd, but there are also shortcomings of the organizers. I know the courts, I know the layout, I know that it will not fit the fans that Alex was going to receive that day. I think the AO organizers should have seen it coming because two or three days before when Alex practiced, she was already being mobbed during her practices. They should have taken that as a sign that the Filipino crowd was coming,” Santamaria said.
READ: Even in defeat, Alex Eala proves she’ll need a bigger court next time
“The organizers probably didn’t foresee the magnitude of the situation. They should have put Alex on a bigger court. Court 6, where Alex played, can only seat around 1,000 and it is known as a party court. The crowd Alex drew could have easily filled KIA Arena (5,000 capacity) or even larger.”
Santamaria added that many Filipinos who traveled from Manila, including Eala’s aunt based in Melbourne, were unable to enter the court.
He also felt the umpire could have asserted stronger control over the crowd.
“I also think the referee was a factor. In my experience, the referee didn’t take control. She wasn’t decisive enough to command respect. If she wanted to control the crowd, she should have been firmer,” he said. “It didn’t reach the crowd enough. It was more like a conversation rather than an order. The referee was also a little inexperienced. It was a combination of all these things.”
‘Gentleman’s sport’
Despite the situation, Santamaria praised Eala for handling the attention with maturity. For the fans, Santamaria hopes Filipinos will learn the nuances of tennis spectatorship.
“There is no one more deserving of this attention than Alex. She can handle it. She was brought up very well by her family, and she handles fame really well,” Santamaria said.
“For the fans, tennis is different from other sports. There must be respect for the opponent. You don’t applaud mistakes. You appreciate good shots, even from the opponent. I encourage Filipino fans to watch full tennis matches to better understand how to behave. There is time to be boisterous, but also time to be quiet. Otherwise, Filipinos might get a bad reputation as disrespectful or rowdy. Tennis is a gentleman’s sport. You appreciate good play rather than pure loyalty.”
He remains confident that Filipino fans will grow alongside Eala as she continues to elevate Philippine tennis.
“It takes time to understand the sport. Alex is going to be here for a while. Fans who want to watch her live should educate themselves on how to properly watch tennis. There will always be a Filipino twist to cheering—that’s our passion—but we should maintain respect for everyone, including the other players and the people watching.”