Zoren Legaspi on witnessing Alex Eala's tennis journey: 'I'm emotionally proud'

Zoren Legaspi shared his pride in Filipino tennis star Alex Eala, whom he had witnessed train and compete from a young age.

In “Fast Talk With Boy Abunda” on Wednesday, Zoren said his family has been connected to Alex’s tennis journey for years, with his daughter Cassy Legaspi pictured with the young athlete during their early days in the sport.

“Tito Boy, ayoko nga magsalita regarding that. Kasi ayoko yung matawag na nag-ba-bandwagon ako kay Alex. But, you know, if you trace her history, magkakasama talaga kami,” he began.

[Tito Boy, I actually don’t want to speak about that because I don’t want to be called someone who is jumping on Alex’s bandwagon. But, you know, if you trace her history, our families have really been together throughout her journey."]

Zoren recalled seeing his twins Mavy and Cassy train alongside Alex and her brother, Mico, under tennis coach Cecil Mamiit.

According to Zoren, he also became close to Alex’s grandfather and coach, Roberto Eala, whom he fondly called “Lolo Bob.”

Zoren said their families would arrive early in Valle Verde in Pasig City to reserve a court and train.

“And ang nakita ko sa kanila, first and foremost, is the discipline. ’Yung disiplina, nasa kanila. And they follow instructions,” he said.

(“And what I saw in them, first and foremost, was discipline. They had that discipline, and they follow instructions.”)

He also described Alex as “very coachable,” noting that she was willing to listen and follow instructions from her coaches.

Amid Alex’s continued rise, Zoren shared his fearless forecast for her future success: "My first prediction is for Alex to win Wimbledon," he said in Filipino.

Alex had a great run during grass season, capturing the WTA 125 title in Birmingham, reaching the semifinals of the Berlin Open, and becomingthe first Filipina to reach the fourth round of the prestigious Grand Slam.

She won her first WTA title at the DC Open.

According to Zoren, he feels particularly emotional whenever he sees Alex succeed because he witnessed the hard work behind her achievements.

“I’m emotionally proud,” he said.

“When I see her raising the trophy, iba ’yung nararamdaman ko. I feel so emotional dahil nakita ko ’yung hirap,” Zoren added.

(“When I see her raising the trophy, I feel something different. I feel so emotional because I saw how hard she worked.”)

He emphasized that tennis is an especially demanding sport, comparing it to several physically and mentally challenging activities combined.

“For the people who don’t really know much about tennis, tennis is like running a marathon. While running a marathon, you’re playing chess. And while playing chess, you’re playing darts. Gano’n kahirap ang tennis,” he said.

(“For people who don’t really know much about tennis, tennis is like running a marathon. While running a marathon, you’re playing chess. And while playing chess, you’re playing darts. That’s how difficult tennis is.”)

Alex is off to the Cinnincati Open, where she just earned her first round bye, after securing the No.17 seed. — LA, GMA News