At just 13, Alex Eala left the Philippines to train at the Rafael Nadal Academy in Spain, a move that set her on a path to global tennis stardom.
Since then, she’s risen through the ranks, reaching a career-best world ranking of 29 and becoming one of the brightest talents in women’s tennis.
Speaking on the ‘Served with Andy Roddick’ podcast, Eala opened up about what Nadal is like away from the cameras.
“I think it was around four years after I joined that he started going there pretty often,” she said. “So I got to spend some time with him – I was close with his cousins.”
Eala went on to explain how humble and down-to-earth he has remained despite his massive success.
“He doesn’t try hard,” she continued. “He has no arrogance; everything is just so easy-going with him. You can have a normal conversation about anything – and that means a lot for someone of his status.”
Alex Eala describes Rafael Nadal as ‘very down to earth’ but admits she is still scared to talk to him
Roddick asked Eala about her first encounter with Nadal.
“The first interaction with Rafa [Nadal] in the academy space, around that time, was not actually in the academy,” she said.
“So, before, we did like a trial, one week, see how it goes…
“My parents, my brother, and I flew over. And in the Madrid airport on the way to his academy we just happened to pass by Rafa.”
“We kind of chased him down! ‘Rafa! We’re going to your academy. Can we take a pic?’ and yeah he took a pic with us.
“That was the first interaction I remember in Spain.
“So a good way to start, I’d say!”
Eala also shared what it’s been like interacting with Nadal since then.
She added: “After that I don’t really remember. He was there a lot and he’s very down-to-earth when you talk to him.”
Nadal might be intimidating for Eala but it doesn’t seem like he sees her that way at all.
Alex Eala admits she’s ‘still scared’ of Rafael Nadal despite being friends
When Andy Roddick asked Eala about her first meeting with Nadal, she recalled it didn’t actually happen at the academy.
“The first interaction with Rafa [Nadal] in the academy space, around that time, was not actually in the academy,” she said. “So, before, we did like a trial, one week, see how it goes…
“My parents, my brother, and I, we flew over and in the Madrid airport we just happened to pass by Rafa on the way to his academy.
“We kind of chased him down! ‘Rafa! We’re going to your academy,’ can we take a pic? And yeah, he took a pic with us. That was the first interaction I remember in Spain.
“So a good way to start!”
Eala went on to talk about what her relationship with Nadal has been like since then.
“After that I don’t really remember. He was there a lot and he’s very down to earth when you talk to him. He asks questions and things like that,” she explained.
“But he’s Rafa so you’re always going to be scared. I’m always still scared. I don’t know what to say. I always get very tongue-tied. It doesn’t get easier!”
Eala may still feel nervous around him but it’s clear Nadal has a lot of respect for her game.
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