Iga Swiatek’s Wimbledon title defense ended Saturday with a 7-6 (9), 6-2 third-round loss to 21-year-old Alexandra Ila, who continues to make Philippine history.
Eala is the first Filipino player, male or female, to reach the fourth round of a Grand Slam singles tournament.
Left-hander Ila fell to her knees and rolled onto her back at Center Court after hitting a forehand winner on her third match point.
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“It’s incredible to have my countrymen cheering me on and knowing that we’re all in this together,” she said in an on-court interview, looking back at Philippine flags.
“This affects them, this affects my family, this affects all the little girls with ruffled socks and chubby cheeks. It means the world,” she said.
Swiatek won her first women’s title at Wimbledon a year ago, beating Amanda Anisimova 6-0, 6-0 in the final.
Eala, who trained in Mallorca at the Rafael Nadal Tennis Academy, received worldwide support last year for her breakthrough run to the semi-finals of the Miami Open.
Also on Saturday, Elena Rybakina, the 2022 Wimbledon champion, lost to Elise Mertens 7-6 (4), 6-1 in the third round at a grass-based Grand Slam.
Rybakina ranks second among women eliminated from the tournament. Her defeat guarantees Aryna Sabalenka maintaining the first line of the ranking after the tournament.
Sabalenka will face Naomi Osaka in the fourth round on Sunday.
Belgium’s Mertens is ranked 25th at Wimbledon, where she has won two doubles titles.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.