Rising tennis star Alex Eala arrived at the Asian Games as the top seed and a gold-medal favorite. But No. 85 Wang Xiyu rallied to beat her in the semifinals, 3-6, 6-3, 6-2. Wang went on to win the title. Where does Eala go after her disappointing upset loss?
Eala heads next to the Wuhan Open, entering the WTA 1000 event in China with a first-round bye after two stinging upset losses. Before the Asian Games, Eala, seeded third in Singapore, lost her round of 16 match there to the 180th-ranked Tatiana Prozorova, 6-4, 5-7, 3-6.
The Philippines’ top-ranked player gave up a mandatory Beijing event for national duty, and Wuhan now offers her the only remaining chance at 1,000-level points this month.
Eala, ranked No. 18, appeared among the first 20 players named on the entry list released Sept. 17 for the Oct. 12-18 tournament, according to Philstar.com.
Eala left Nagoya with a bronze, her second Asian Games singles bronze and third medal overall.
“[Wang] was more consistent,” Eala explained, as quoted by Reuters.
Alex Eala’s Wuhan Open Chances Against a Stacked Field
Eala enters Wuhan seeded, with a bye, but not as a title favorite. That designation goes to defending champion Coco Gauff, who won last year’s event without dropping a set and beat Jessica Pegula in the final, according to WTATennis.com. Aryna Sabalenka, a three-time Wuhan champion, was 20-1 all time at the tournament coming into this year.
Mirra Andreeva, Linda Noskova, Elina Svitolina, Karolina Muchova, Iga Swiatek and Marta Kostyuk are also entered, as are Naomi Osaka and Jasmine Paolini. World No. 1 Elena Rybakina is not. She withdrew Oct. 4 with a foot and lower-leg injury after a second-round loss in Beijing, according to Reuters reporting.
Wuhan launched in 2014, with Petra Kvitova winning the first title. It left the calendar after 2019 and came back in 2024 as a WTA 1000.
How to Watch Alex Eala at the Wuhan Open
Eala was born May 23, 2005, in Quezon City, turned pro in March 2020 and trains at the Rafael Nadal Academy in Mallorca, Spain, according to WTATennis.com‘s official player profile page. She won the 2022 US Open girls’ singles title, then beat Madison Keys and Swiatek on a wild card run to the 2025 Miami semifinals.
Her first WTA title came at this year’s Washington Open. Her career-high ranking of No. 18, reached Aug. 24, makes her the highest-ranked Southeast Asian player in WTA history.
U.S. viewers can find the tournament on Tennis Channel, according to SportsOnTVUSA‘s Wuhan Open broadcast listings. Wuhan runs 12 hours ahead of Eastern time, so matches land in overnight and early morning windows. FuboTV, DirecTV Stream and Tennis Channel Plus carry the channel’s programming.
The main draw runs Oct. 12-18, with the draw set to be revealed Saturday, Oct. 10. As a projected top-32 seed, Eala skips Monday’s first round. Her opener comes in the second round, typically Oct. 13-14, with the opponent and start time set once the draw is made.
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