Legendary coach Brad Gilbert described Alex Eala as the WTA star with “the most pressure on her” as he named the Filipina as the player he is “most interested” to follow in 2027.

After starting 2026 as the world No 53, Eala is currently ranked 20th as she approaches the end of what has been an excellent campaign.

Eala reached her career-high ranking of world No 18 in August shortly after she captured her maiden career title at the WTA 500 event in Washington DC.

The 21-year-old achieved the best Grand Slam result of her career to date at this year’s Wimbledon Championships, where she reached the fourth round after upsetting Iga Swiatek.

Gilbert and former WTA world No 9 Andrea Petkovic discussed Eala on the latest episode of Tennis Channel’s The Big T podcast.

Gilbert: “Maybe the player I’m most interested to see where she’s going to go in 2027 — she probably has the most pressure on her of any player — is Eala.”

Petkovic: “It’s going to be so interesting to see how she backs up this amazing season she’s had this year.

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“What a brilliant young lady Alex Eala is, right? Not only with her tennis, but also with her personality.

“We talked about her plenty already because of her great success on court, but the way she masters everything off court is really, really impressive, don’t you think?”

Gilbert: “Yeah, she handles herself beautifully. From a country that’s never had any players, it’s great to see. And she’s got fans to travel (smiles).”

Eala is competing this week at the Ningbo Open — a WTA 500 tournament in China.

The Quezon City-born star crushed Diane Parry 6-3, 6-1 in her opening match, and she will face world No 13 Diana Shnaider in the second round.

Ahead of the Ningbo Open, Eala said: “I’m thankfully experiencing so many new things, so as I experience, of course I learn and try to be a better player, try to be a better person, and yeah, take it step by step.

“I think when I’m able to focus on my work, especially on court, and that I’m able to compartmentalise and really prioritise what needs to be on top.”