Alex Eala won her maiden Tour title at the Mubadala DC Open, defeating Jessica Pegula in the summit clash of the WTA500 event. As has often been the case with her, the youngster was supported by a boisterous crowd through the week.
Taking note of her immense popularity, especially among a loyal Filipino fanbase that follows her to tournaments across the globe, former World No. 1 Andy Roddick hailed Eala’s victory as a good result for tennis at large. Exhorting more people to cheer for her,
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Roddick, during the latest episode of Served Podcast, said Eala’s ability to fill up big stadiums was of great value to the sport. Supporting the talented youngster then, according to him, was supporting for the sport itself.
“Everyone in tennis should be cheering for her, right? You can say, like, don’t pick favorites, don’t cheer for her, but I’m cheering for markets,” Andy Roddick said. “If we could bring hundreds of millions of people because she’s playing, well then, I’m going to cheer for that because it’s better for tennis.”
The American noted that he did not hold anything against the rest of the current crop, but was quick to add that certain players end up having a bigger impact on the sport. Building on that argument, he noted that Eala winning a Grand Slam and posting consistent results then begins to carry more weight.
“I know some people might be like ‘She doesn’t want to Slam’,” Andy Roddick said. “But she’s literally carrying hundreds of millions of fans to our sport and saying, you’re die-hards now. This is great for the sport.”
“It doesn’t mean you like her more… I love Jessica Pagula,” he continued. “All I’m saying is that I want to see Alex Eala do well consistently because of what an impact she will have on the game. Not all impacts are the same with. With players, you know, Alex Eala winning a Slam is more than you know, someone else winning a Slam.”
Andy Roddick previews Alex Eala’s US Open swing
Andy Roddick also previewed the remainder of the season, especially the US Open swing for Alex Eala, who seems to have struck her best form just in time for the season’s last Grand Slam.
Noting that a couple of strong results in Toronto and Cincinnati could see Fala rise to the top-16 in the world rankings, the American said it could secure a more favorable draw for the youngster. He heaped further praise on her, reflecting positively on her fearless approach to tennis.
“Alex Eala’s not scared to play the top players there,” Andy Roddick said. “There’s no doubt, and I mean, she’s sneaky, we’re talking four spots away from being seeded in the top 16. That’s the next goal for her.”
“Can we put up a couple of results in Canada and Cincinnati and sneak inside that top 16 where a fourth round is expected and not a surprise to anyone,” he added.
Eala, the 25th seed at the Canadian Open, will open her campaign against the big-hitting Alycia Parks. She is also scheduled to play in Cincinnati later in the month.
Edited by Vedant Chandel