Royal picture: Alex Eala meets Princess Catherine at Wimbledon

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MANILA, Philippines — Filipina tennis star Alex Eala mingled with royalty amid a historic run at Wimbledon by meeting with Catherine, Princess of Wales.

Catherine, wife of British heir Prince William, made a surprise appearance last July 2 to the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club where she is a royal patron to watch some of the British tennisters competing at the Wimbledon Championships.

Among those she watched were Arthur Fery who beat Finland's Otto Virtanen and Katie Swan who lost to the United States' Madison Keys, as well as sharing in the company of former tennis players Andy Murray and Anne Keothavong.

That same day Alex notched a come-from-behind victory to defeat Australia's Maya Joint, continuing to make history for the Philippines at Wimbledon and setting a third round match-up with reigning champion Iga Swiatek of Poland.

RELATED: Eala ready to test defending champion Swiatek

Alex had more reason to celebrate as she managed to snap a photo with Catherine and fellow tennis player Zeynep Sönmez from Turkey.

Sönmez and her doubles partner Jéssica Bouzas Maneiro of Spain had lost to the tandem of Japan's Shuko Aoyama and Taiwan's Liang En-shuo, a day after losing to American Claire Liu in the singles competition.

"So honoured to have grabbed a pic with Her Royal Highness!" Alex said on Instagram, posting her photo with Catherine and good friend Sönmez.

Alex will face Swiatek in Wimbledon's Round of 32 later, July 4. The Filipina famously beat the Pole during an emphatic Miami Open run last year, though ?wi?tek got her revenge Madrid Open a month later.

RELATED: Eala turns heartbreak into high with Wimbledon payback vs Joint; Swiatek showdown looms