Alex Eala on dealing with pressure and growing fanbase: ‘I know what I represent’
Filipino tennis superstar Alex Eala shared the pressure of being able to perform better in every tournament knowing that she is the first Filipino to achieve such a feat on the WTA circuit. In an interview with the five-time Grand Slam winner, Maria Sharapova, for her podcast, Pretty Tough, the rising star acknowledged the pressure but chose to see it in a different way instead.
Alex just came from a successful Asian Games stint where she was able to bring home a bronze medal for the country. Due to her decision to play for the country, she was unable to join the Beijing Open which was a mandatory event for all players.
Despite this, Alex shared in the interview how representation matters not just for her, but for the future generation of Filipino tennis players.
“It can get heavy, it can and it definitely comes with pressure. One thing about this whole journey of support that I’ve been getting is I understand the weight that the representation holds and I know that there’s a big audience that looks up to me,” she admitted.
She maintained how she’s forced to look inward now as she has to set a good example for the thousands of people who watch her–– something that she’s very much up to the challenge.
“But, I guess, it forces me to look inward as well and I’ll die on a hill saying that you need to be genuine. So that makes me look at myself and be like I want to be the best version I could be of myself, you know? So that I’m genuinely a good example for whoever looks up to me,” she said.
“You know, I try to do my best and represent my culture and these people–– these lovely people–– the way they deserve to be represented,” she added.
For Alex, the journey that she goes through is an “emotional experience” which comes along with the pressure of representing a whole nation to a sport that demands a lot as well.
“It’s a very emotional experience. What I learned is that when there’s that much people involved, my experiences become a lot more emotional because of the pressure, because I know how bad I want it, because I know what I represent–– all of those things make this journey so much more emotional and that’s not a bad thing,” she asserted.
The pressure might be always there for the world-ranked 18th player but she maintained that it’s something that she welcomes with open arms.
“I’m able to experience for the first time–– I’m in the position where I’m supposed to win. That’s different but I like to be in that position. I like competition in general–– whether I’m the underdog or I’m the one supposed to win, I love it, I love being there,” she ended.