“Sometimes It’s Scary” — Alex Eala’s Coach Makes a Startling Admission About the Huge Filipino Support Surrounding the Tennis Star, Revealing the Unexpected Pressure Behind Her Explosive Rise
Alexandra Eala is blessed with one of the biggest and most passionate fanbase in tennis.
However, with that comes a rather unique set of pressures, the likes of which very few others on tour have to contend with.
She steps onto every court as the best-supported player, and whilst her fans are not massively expectant, there is surely a silent expectation to perform.
Joan Bosch, her coach, has briefly referenced this whilst speaking to the Diary of a Professional Coach.
He had nothing but positive words for the Filipinos who follow Alexandra Eala to every tournament, but also admitted they do ‘scare’ him and the team a little.
Alex Eala’s coach Joan Bosch praises her incredible Filipino fans
Bosch began by expressing his genuine surprise: “We could never think this would be like this.”
He continued: “We are super happy with the way that the Filipino community and fans are. Everywhere we go, they are there. This morning on the plane, we found a few Filipinos; they went from Washington to see Alex in Toronto again. It’s so nice to see how they really believe in her and how they have this passion on the court when she is playing.
The court in Toronto was full every day when she was playing. For us, it is even sometimes scary, because it’s tough to always have the best level. This was a tough week for Alex because she won Washington, she played the final on Monday, and we just travelled on Tuesday. It was not easy to handle. I am happy that she could do a good two matches in the first two matches.
Eala will play mixed doubles with Felix Auger-Aliassime at the US Open in the coming weeks, as part of a continued busy summer schedule for her.
Alex Eala’s sensational 2026 campaign thus far
Whilst 2025 was a fine breakout year for Eala, 2026 has been one where she has truly proven herself a mainstay at the apex of the WTA Tour.
After all, the 21-year-old has not only won her first-ever tour-level title in Washington, but that came after her run to the fourth round at Wimbledon as well.
| Rank | Player | Ranking points |
| 16. | Diana Shnaider | 2468 |
| 17. | Sorana Cîrstea | 2294 |
| 18. | Alexandra Eala | 2221 |
| 19. | Ekaterina Alexandrova | 2186 |
| 20. | Jasmine Paolini | 2124 |
On the way, Eala has beaten almost all of the sport’s biggest players too, maintaining a 9-5 winning record against top-ten opponents, and deservedly occupying 18th in the WTA live rankings.
Discussing this incredible year and whether they had expected such a rapid rise, Bosch admitted: “We were positive because she had a good pre-season and I was super happy with the way that she played in New Zealand.
“She beat Vekic, Marcinko and Linette and made the semi-finals, with a good level. The way that she played, I was super happy with. And I have to say that I was still watching many things that we could improve. You never know what the limit is that you can achieve, but I thought if we could do the same level as last year, we would be lucky with the weeks, because it is not the same playing well at a small tournament as at a big tournament.
So I told the team because I work also with another coach Sandro and a fitness coach in Luke, and in the meetings I always told them that if we do well, in some specific weeks we can have a better run than 50. We were top 50 at that moment and it worked.”
