Nadal Praises ‘True Phenomenon’ Eala for Time 100

Alexandra Eala is featured in this week’s Time 100, with an assist from none other than the King of Clay. 

Rafael Nadal has watched Alexandra Eala’s development from close range for years, but the 22-time Grand Slam champion says it is not only the Filipina’s rapid rise on the tennis court that has impressed him.

Writing about Eala, after she was selected to the 2026 TIME100 Next list of influential rising stars, Nadal praised the 21-year-old’s willingness to learn, her humility and her ability to remain grounded as her profile – and ranking – has surged.

Nadal also revealed a special connection between the two: Eala was the first player he stepped on court with after his retirement.

Alex Eala was named by Time Magazine as one of the world's most influential rising stars 🤩

Perhaps there's no one better to tell her story than Rafael Nadal himself! 🙌https://t.co/yaHZ72BjaF

— SPIN.ph (@spinph) September 30, 2026

“Alexandra Eala was the first player I shared a tennis court with after my retirement,” Nadal wrote. “One day, she asked whether I felt like hitting with her for a while. For the first time in many months, I picked up a racket and played again.”

That practice took place in November 2025, just about a year after Nadal played the final match of his career at the Davis Cup Finals in Malaga, Spain.

Eala has been linked with Nadal for nearly a decade. She joined the Rafa Nadal Academy in Mallorca in 2013, when she was 13, and Nadal has been able to closely follow a journey that has transformed her from a promising junior into one of the fastest-rising players on the WTA Tour.

After breaking through with her stunning semifinal run at Miami in 2025 – where she defeated three Grand Slam champions – Eala has taken giant steps in 2026, winning her first WTA 500 title in Washington, D.C. and becoming the first Filipina to crack the Top 20.

Eala Looks Back on US Open with Pride

Nadal is confident that there is more to come.

“One of her greatest strengths is precisely her ability to listen, learn, and keep improving,” he wrote.

But Nadal reserved perhaps his strongest praise not for Eala the player but for Eala the person. 

“Alex remains a wonderful person – warm, approachable, and humble,” he wrote. “It isn’t easy to handle becoming a true phenomenon at such a young age, and she deserves a lot of credit for keeping her feet on the ground.”