WUHAN has proven to be unkind to Filipina rising star Alex Eala.
The world No. 19 bowed out of the 2026 Wuhan Open doubles tournament after she and Turkish partner Zeynep Sönmez got swept by Anhelina Kalinina and Dayana Yastremska, 2-6, 3-6, on Tuesday evening at Court 2.
Still shaking off the effects of her first-round exit in the singles the night before, Eala and her partner got outclassed by the Ukranian duo in the round of 32 of the WTA1000 event in just one hour and nine minutes.
READ Eala drops out of Wuhan Open early after falling to Shi Han
Kalinina and Yastremska jumped to a 4-0 lead in the first set but Eala did get her side on the board, breaking in the fifth game only to split the next two to fall behind.
The Filipina showed grit in the second set after securing the first game for her side, but the Ukranian tandem would respond by taking five.
Eala and Sönmez would stay alive after Kalinina's errors in the next two games, but the Ukranian would make up for those with an ace for the victory.
Mistakes continued to plague Eala as their tandem committed 19 for the match, 12 in Set 1 alone, while only winning 40-percent of their first serves.
Eala will remain in China as she looks to make a quick pivot at the 2026 BNB Ningbo Open, a WTA500 event, which starts on Oct. 19.
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