Wimbledon has found a new Centre Court superstar and the Philippines will only love their national heroine even more after a tearful Alexandra Eala dumped champion Iga Swiatek out of the tournament.
On a day of shocks in the ladies' draw, with No.3 seed Swiatek and second-seeded former champ Elena Rybakina, who was defeated by evergreen Belgian Elise Mertens, both departing, 21-year-old Eala stepped up to show why she's destined to be one of the next superstars of the women's game.
The 21-year-old left-hander, already an idol to 120 million Filipinos, first enchanted everyone with a brilliant 7-6 (11-9) 6-2 triumph over the six-time grand slam champion but then managed to induce a lump in the throat in every Centre Court spectator with her emotional post-match on-court address.
