Joselito Malig

Philippines' Alexandra Eala returns to Australia's Maya Joint during their women's singles second round tennis match on the fourth day of the 2026 Wimbledon Championships at The All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in Wimbledon, southwest London, on July 2, 2026. (Photo by Glyn KIRK / AFP) / RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE

Article (news)

Dyan Castillejo

ABS-CBN News

<div><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/17830057233722ALEXTennisGbrWimbledon.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"/>The Philippines&#x27; Alexandra Eala returns to Australia&#x27;s Maya Joint during their women&#x27;s singles second round tennis match on the fourth day of the 2026 Wimbledon Championships at The All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in Wimbledon, on July 2, 2026. Photo by Glyn Kirk, AFP</div><div> </div>(UPDATED) Filipina tennis ace Alex Eala is through to the third round of the 2026 Wimbledon Championships after a 3-6 6-2 6-0 thriller against Australia’s Maya Joint on Thursday. Eala also avenged her heartbreaking Eastbourne Open final loss to Joint in 2025.The 20-year-old Joint, currently ranked world No. 87, came out swinging from the start.She broke Eala in the very first game with aggressive, well-placed hitting to lead 1-0. Eala found her footing quickly, firing two forehand winners to break back and level at 1-1 before Joint moved ahead 2-1.The Australian continued to strike the ball cleanly, holding comfortably to extend her lead to 3-1.Joint then had a chance to go up 4-1 but made three consecutive errors to hand Eala a crucial hold. Down 3-2, Eala then saved two set points at deuce with two return errors from Joint, pushing the game back level. But Joint strung together two straight points, finishing with a passing shot to take the first set, 6-3.The second set was a different story. Joint held her opening service game to lead 1-0. At 15-30, Eala turned it around with 2 consecutive aces. Her serves reached 105 and 107 mph to level at 1-1.From there, two return errors from Joint at deuce gifted Eala a 3-1 lead, and the Filipino never looked back. The 29th-seeded Pinay consistently forced errors to break again and surge to 5-2 before closing out the set at 6-2 with a brilliant counter-drop shot off Joint’s own drop shot.The third set saw long games but Eala showed her maturity and tenacity, grinding it 6-0.Eala was emotional after the win and went around the court thanking the Filipino crowd.Eala will face Wimbledon women&#x27;s singles defending champion Iga Swiatek in the next round.<div> </div>&#x27;I HAD TO DIG REALLY DEEP&#x27;After the match, Eala said  said she was happy to reverse her Eastbourne final loss last year. “I really had to dig deep especially after the first set. Maya came out on fire… ready,” she said.“I was expecting a really good match. We’ve competed in some very good conditions before so I was prepared for a good match,” the 21-year old tennis ace said. “She’s coming off an amazing win (over Serena Williams). I watched it and I think she played really well and handled herself really well in that situation. Congratulations to Maya.”When asked about getting a measure of revenge for last year’s Eastbourne final loss, Eala did not hold back.“For those who don’t know, we had an insane match last year and I lost. It hit me quite hard. I cried a lot. I don’t think I was able to watch those highlights for a couple of months,” she said. “So I’m really happy. I think I improved a lot in this past year. I’m happy I’m able to look back at that loss and I’m able to smile.”The win is the latest in a run of results that Eala said reflects the work she and her team have been putting in behind the scenes.“I have been working extremely hard. My team over there has been working extremely hard. I really feel like it’s paying off. These wins mean a lot,” she said.

Filipina tennis ace Alex Eala advanced to the third round of the 2026 Wimbledon Championships after outclassing Australia's Maya Joint, 3-6 6-2 6-0, on Thursday.

Filipina tennis ace Alex Eala advanced to the third round of the 2026 Wimbledon Championships after outclassing Australia's Maya Joint, 3-6 6-2 6-0, on Thursday.

Alex Eala barges into Wimbledon third round after thrilling win over Maya Joint

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Alex Eala barges into Wimbledon third round after thrilling win over Maya Joint

Dyan Castillejo,

ABS-CBN News

Published July 02, 2026 10:12 PM PHT

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Updated July 02, 2026 11:33 PM PHT

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Alex Eala

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