Giant-slaying Eala dethrones Swiatek for historic Wimbledon R16 bid

Last year, Alex Eala started to make history with a stunner against world No. 3 Iga Swiatek in the Miami Open.

In 2026, the Filipina ace continued to dominate against the same opponent.

Overcoming a tough Swiatek hurdle, Eala went the extra mile and unleashed her A-game as she conquered the gutsy Polish stalwart via a 7(11)–6(9), 6–2 thriller to reach the 2026 Wimbledon Championships round of 16 on July 8 (PHT).

The win made the 21-year-old the first Filipino to reach the third round of a prestigious Grand Slam.

With Swiatek rallying back from the dead, the Philippine bet was unable to flip the script as Eala surrendered a 5–3 lead in the opening set.

However, Eala shifted her gears at the right moment and ended the nip-and-tuck affair with two straight winners to close out the tightly-contested 84-minute wringer with an 11–9 game-point thriller.

The 29th seed turned it up a notch as the gung-ho Eala breezed through a 4–0 lead in the second set.

Although Swiatek attempted to turn the tides by sealing the next two games, the young Eala simply was too much after responding with two successful games of her own.

Eala is now 2–1 against Swiatek with the recent triumph after the Pinay bet claimed the first matchup in the Miami Open, with the world No. 3 levelling the field in the Madrid Open.

She is now set to face 2024 Wimbledon finalist Jasmine Paolini in the round of 16 in hopes of a potential quarterfinals spot on Monday, July 8 (PHT).

With reports from ABS-CBN