Alex Eala mania is sweeping through tennis and her popularity is allowing some of her rivals to boost their following on social media and with their podcasts.
World No 3 Jessica Pegula had no answer for the hero of the Philippines as she roared back from a set behind to beat her in the Washington Open final on Monday, sealing her first WTA Tour title amid euphoric scenes.
The reaction to Eala’s win has electrified tennis, with her hero status in her homeland now impacting tennis fans as she climbs up the ranking and emerges as a big contender to win the US Open.
Pegula was naturally disappointed to lose against Eala after taking the first set in the Washington final, but she has stated her appreciation for the positive impact Eala is having on the game.
She has also boosted her own followers on her podcast thanks to an Eala bounce, with thousands of new subscribers signing up for her podcast since her clash with Eala.
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“Filipino fans are insane,” Pegula said as she spoke to the media at the WTA 1000 event in Toronto.
“I hadn’t really looked online much yet, but someone from our (The Players’ Box podcast) team did text us, there was a lot of like Filipino comments online and… just a lot more interaction with their fan base, especially through our podcast, which is pretty cool.
“I’m glad that they like to listen and follow, and I think that’s really neat that it’s crossed over.”
Pegula’s subscriber boost on YouTube is nothing new, with Eala’s big run at Wimbledon that included a memorable victory against defending champion Iga Swiatek serving up some huge follower numbers on podcasts.
Andy Roddick’s Serve podcast received a big boost when he spoke about Eala over the last few weeks and the same was true for The Tennis Podcast, hosted by Catherine Whitaker.
The Off Court with Greg Rusedski podcast has also posted some big numbers when they have mentioned Eala, with their shows looking back on her wins at Wimbledon and Washington attracting tens of thousands more views than other shows on the channel.
Tennis365 has also noticed a huge increase in interactions on Eala stories in recent weeks, as her fans scour all social media platforms to get any information on their hero.
“It’s been an amazing few days for me,” said Eala as she spoke to the media at the WTA 1000 event in Toronto.
“Of course, so many emotions, so many things to process. Tennis is such a humbling sport, and at the end of the day it’s my job. So, you know, learning to handle all of this, you know, kind of extra things that come with my job has definitely been a process.
“I enjoy it. I enjoy a lot being in these sorts of environments, but there’s so many things that I want to work on. There’s so many things that I focus on in terms of my progress as a player, so still a really long way for me to go I think.”
She also saluted her fans as she added: “It’s nice to see, you know, that the Filipino community is really showing up and they’re enjoying tennis, and hopefully it will help grow the sport as well.”
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