Alex Eala has been described as an “absolute rock star” and “the biggest draw in women’s tennis” ahead of Aryna Sabalenka and Coco Gauff by former ATP Tour stars.

The 20-year-old is a trailblazer for tennis in the Philippines, and she is already firmly established as her nation’s most accomplished player of all time.

Eala has received massive support from her compatriots in 2026, with her matches at the Australian Open, her home event in Manila, and the Dubai Championships drawing particularly huge crowds.

The Filipina climbed to a new career-high WTA ranking of world No 31 on Monday after her run to the quarter-finals at the WTA 1000 in Dubai.

On the latest episode of the Nothing Major podcast, former world No 11 Sam Querrey posed a big question about Eala’s popularity to fellow retired American players Steve Johnson and John Isner.

“My question to you guys is, on the women’s side, is Eala the biggest draw in women’s tennis right now? Is she bigger than Sabalenka? Is she bigger than Coco?,” asked Querrey.

Johnson, a former world No 21, replied: “Yes. Dude, it’s crazy. She’s having the same effect that [Joao] Fonseca was having on the men’s side last year in Miami.

“Every court… Australia, the court was standing room only. Then Dubai, standing room only. It’s insane. It’s massive.

“The crowds she’s getting right now, all over the world, are insane. The Doha crowds were insane for her last week. Insane.”

Former world No 8 John Isner gave his verdict and highlighted the size of the market in the Philippines.

“It’s everywhere. Absolutely. It’s a huge market. I think a lot of people underestimated how big that market is,” Isner said.

“They finally have a star on the women’s side of the game. It would be the same if they had a men’s star as well. There are some huge markets with untapped potential. They just need players to emerge and make a name for themselves.

“And that’s what Alex has done so far. So she’s definitely one to watch, obviously because she’s so good, but just for the atmosphere. You want to tune into her matches just to see what it’s like on the court.”

Querrey added: “She’s already been on the cover of Vogue and she’s playing well right now too. If she wins a Slam, it would be one of the biggest things in the wo

“She was unknown until Miami last year. I think we can all kind of agree on that. But she is just like an absolute rock star. Even though she’s not top 10 in the world, when she gets to these tournaments now, she has to play on centre court.”