President Marcos on Sunday cheered tennis sensation Alex Eala on ahead of her Wimbledon main draw debut, saying the best is yet to come for the young athlete.

Eala made a historic runner-up finish in the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) Lexus Eastbourne Open 2025 in the United Kingdom on Saturday evening. She is now No. 56 in the WTA rankings, jumping 18 places from No. 74.

“The fight goes on, Alex! We all watched you make history as the first Filipino to reach a WTA 250 singles final,” Mr. Marcos posted on his official Facebook page.

He praised the 20-year-old tennis star after she became the first Filipino to reach a WTA finals, calling her feat a victory for the entire nation.

“That (feat) alone is already a victory for our country and for the millions of Filipinos who stand proudly behind you,” he added. “Keep going, your best is yet to come.”

Eala will be playing against defending champion Barbora Krejcikova of the Czech Republic on Tuesday. This is her first match at the main draw of Wimbledon, a year after falling short in her final qualifying game against Lulu Sun of New Zealand.

Filipino spirit

Speaker Martin Romualdez also lauded Eala calling her a symbol of national pride and perseverance.

“Alex Eala has done more than just play the game—she has made history and stirred the soul of a nation,” Romualdez said, adding that Eala has brought the Philippines to the global stage of tennis,” he added.

The WTA is the global governing body for women’s professional tennis and organizes the WTA Tour, the main professional tennis tournament for women. The Lexus Eastbourne Open is a WTA 250 tournament.

“Beyond records and rankings, what she gave us was something even more powerful: hope, pride, and the promise of a brighter future for Philippine sports,” Romualdez said.

“Alex Eala may have lost a match, but she won a nation’s heart,” he added.

Romualdez also said Eala reminded the world of the Filipino spirit: resilient, driven and filled with potential.

Remarkable run

The Eastbourne Open is widely regarded as a warm-up event before the Wimbledon Championships, where Eala will again make history as the first Filipino to play in the prestigious event.

Observers consider Eala’s path to the Eastbourne final as nothing short of remarkable.

She navigated through the qualifying rounds, defeating Hailey Baptiste and Zeynep Sonmez, before making a significant impact in the main draw.

Her main draw victories included impressive wins over Italy’s Lucia Bronzetti, a walkover against 2021 French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko, and a dominant performance against Ukrainian Dayana Yastremska in the quarterfinals.

In the semifinals, Eala battled past Frenchwoman Varvara Gracheva in a grueling three-set match to secure her historic spot in the final.

This followed a strong showing earlier this year at the WTA 1000 Miami Open, where she reached the semifinals, notably defeating multiple Grand Slam champions.