Alex Eala makes it to Time100 Next 2026 list

Filipino tennis phenomenon Alex Eala has added another distinction to her career. TIME has named her in the magazine's list of TIME100 Next: The World's Most Influential Rising Stars of 2026.

On Sept. 30, TIME launched its list with a writeup on Eala penned by 22-time Grand Slam champion and two-time Olympic gold medalist Rafael Nadal. In 2023, Eala graduated from the Rafa Nadal Academy in Mallorca, Spain. She still regularly uses the school's facilities to train for tournaments. 

The magazine placed Eala, 21, under its Innovators category.

"Alexandra Eala was the first player I shared a tennis court with after my retirement. One day, she asked whether I felt like hitting with her for a while. For the first time in many months, I picked up a racket and played again," Nadal wrote. 

He then enumerated a few of Eala's career milestones: beating three Grand Slam champion players at the 2025 Miami Open when she was just 19, winning the WTA 500 tournament this year, and becoming the first Fiipino to rank among the world's top 20 as World No. 18. 

"And she still has plenty of room to grow. One of her greatest strengths is precisely her ability to listen, learn, and keep improving," continued Nadal, who himself appeared in TIME's Most Influential People list in 2022. 

More than that, though, Nadal marveled at how Eala is "a wonderful person—warm, approachable, and humble." 

"Now, all that remains is to keep enjoying watching her progress," Nadal wrote. 

TIME's annual list places a spotlight on individuals "who are shaping the future," according to its website.

In 2019, the magazine launched TIME100 Next, which lists the world's most influential rising stars. According to TIME, these individuals "seem to have come out of nowhere, somehow magicking themselves into the culture, seizing the zeitgeist, or leapfrogging their industries with little advance notice."

Eala is currently representing the Philippines at the 20th Asian Games in Nagoya, Japan. On Sept. 30, she secured at least a bronze medal after dominating Chinese Taipei's Joanna Garland 7-5, 6-0.

The Filipina phenomenon next plays against fourth seed Wang Xiyu of China in the semifinals on Oct. 1, 12:30 p.m., Manila time. 

Eala and Shaira Rivera bowed out of the women's doubles after a loss to China's Jiang Xinyu and Yang Zhaoxuan.