Alex Eala fans calling for the Filipina to play at the WTA Finals – even though she hasn’t qualified – have been told tennis is not a “popularity” contest.
The 21-year-old arguably has the biggest following of supporters in tennis right now, as the Philippine faithful cheer on her every move as she tries to climb up the rankings.
The left-hander currently sits in 19th spot, ahead of her last-16 match in Ningbo against Diana Shnaider on Thursday. Eala is also 19th in the Race with 2,151 points so far this year, with eighth-placed Linda Noskova more than 2,000 points ahead.
While it is tradition for the top eight players in the world to duke it out at the WTA Finals, which will be held in Indian Wells next month, Eala fans think her star power should see her compete there.
Journalist Jon Wertheim has been criticised by some of her followers for pointing out that her burgeoning status does not guarantee her a place in the eight-strong field. And now, Serena Williams’ coach Rennae Stubbs has backed him up.
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The former world No 1 women’s doubles player also slyly repeated her claim that the biggest thing standing in the way of Eala winning a Grand Slam is her serve, something she received a lot of backlash for earlier this summer.
She said on The Rennae Stubbs Tennis Podcast, “Jon Wertheim has gotten into this little thing online about people saying ‘Alex Eala should be part of the WTA Finals,’ and he’s like, ‘That is not how it works’.
“And of course he realised because of course I said one thing about Alex Eala once about her serve maybe being the thing that will cost her a major title, which I still kind of believe. This is it [internet Stan culture] at its best.”
(Stan culture is a subculture of hyper-devoted online fans who show extreme support for their favourite public figure, which in this case is Eala.)
However, Stubbs pointed out that Polish fans will want Iga Swiatek to compete at the WTA Finals and if the qualification criteria revolved around popularity, retired stars Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal would likely qualify for the ATP Finals.
She continued, “Talking about people saying, ‘Alex Eala is the most popular player in the world; she should get a spot in the WTA Finals’. I am like, ‘Guys, popularity is not what gets you in’. Poland would like Iga Swiatek to be in the WTA Finals as well.”
Her co-host Caitlyn Thompson chimed up that this isn’t the Eurovision Song Contest but Eala’s popularity has led to the creation of a WTA 250 event in Manila from 2027, so it definitely has its uses.
Stubbs added, “If that was the case, there would be certain men in the ATP Finals that wouldn’t be there. Roger and Rafa would be the number two picks. Throw in Novak [Djokovic] while we’re at it.”
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