Last year, Alex Eala could not get through Singapore qualifying. Ranked No. 136 in January 2025, she lost to Switzerland's Simona Waltert 6-3, 6-2 in the final qualifying round.
She returns as a headliner. Now a career-high world No. 18, Eala is chasing a second WTA 500 title at the Singapore Tennis Open, ESPN reports. Her first came in Washington in August, when she beat Jessica Pegula in the final. Philstar calls it unfinished business.
The event returned as a WTA 250 in 2025 and has been upgraded to WTA 500, opening the Asian swing. Pegula, the world No. 3, is among the withdrawals, along with Diana Shnaider, Sorana Cîrstea, Ekaterina Alexandrova and Anastasia Potapova. The 28-player draw is still led by world No. 5 Mirra Andreeva, world No. 11 Amanda Anisimova and defending champion Elise Mertens.
The path
Eala is the No. 3 seed with a first-round bye. She opens in the round of 16 against the winner of Tatiana Prozorova and Sofia Costoulas, who met at the inaugural WTA 125 Philippine Women's Open in Manila.
A win could bring Donna Vekić, the 2024 Paris Olympics silver medalist. Eala is 2-0 against her this year: 4-6, 6-4, 6-4 in the Auckland first round in January, and 7-5, 6-4 in the Berlin first round in June.
Singapore is her first event since a 5-7, 6-3, 5-7 loss to Iva Jovic in the US Open third round. The main draw starts Monday at OCBC Arena. After Singapore, she carries the flag at the Asian Games.
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