Why Hate on Eala? After Saying Alex Eala Will ‘Never Win a Slam,’ Rennae Stubbs Has Advice for Naomi Osaka and Iga Swiatek on How to Brutally Deal with the Filipino Star
According to Rennae Stubbs, Alex Eala’s serve is a weakness in the Filipino’s game that will prevent her from winning a major unless she makes significant improvements to the shot. More recently, the Australian former women’s doubles No. 1 who is currently coaching Serena Williams, touched on how Eala’s spin-heavy second serve can be dealt with by the likes of Naomi Osaka and Iga Swiatek, who have both suffered recent losses to the Filipino.
In late July, Stubbs, speaking on The Rennae Stubbs Tennis Podcast, said:
“Alexandra Eala’s serve is never going to win her a Grand Slam. I know you could say the same about Angie Kerber, but I feel like that’s what’s holding her back.”
On Sunday, August 2, after Eala’s clinical 6-4, 6-2 win over Naomi Osaka in the women’s singles semifinals of the 2026 Mubadala DC Open, Stubbs responded to a fan on X (formerly Twitter) who wondered what the Japanese, along with Iga Swiatek, Elena Rybakina and Elina Svitolina, have to do in order to deal with the Filipino’s second serve. According to the Australian, Eala’s rivals should not ‘fight the spin’.
“Don’t fight the spin. When a lefty serves to u try not hit it against that spin,” Stubbs wrote.
People might think it’s easy to return Alex Eala’s second serve, it’s quite the opposite” – Iga Swiatek
Iga Swiatek was the defending women’s singles champion at this year’s Wimbledon Championships. However, it was Alex Eala who dashed the Pole’s title defense hopes with an emphatic 7-6(9), 6-2 victory in the third round. In the match, Swiatek struggled on multiple occasions to return Eala’s slow and spinny second serve. After the conclusion of the contest, Swiatek reflected on her struggles during a post-match press conference, saying.
“It was tougher mentally for me to accept these missed returns from the slow serves. I’ve got to say it’s much tougher to return a serve like that than a normal serve. Even though it’s super slow and people might think it’s easy to return that, it’s quite the opposite.”
At the time of writing, Alex Eala finds herself a set down against Jessica Pegula in the women’s singles final of the 2026 Mubadala DC Open, with the match having been suspended due to rain. A win for the Filipino would mark her maiden WTA Tour-level title triumph
