ALEX Eala caps off her 2026 season as the second seed in the WTA250 Prudential Hong Kong Tennis Open starting this Monday.
The Filipino tennis star is set to open her campaign against world no. 65 Alycia Parks of the United States in their third clash this season.
The two split their first two meetings, with Parks taking the 0-6, 6-3, 6-2 win in the first round of the Australian Open, while Eala rebounded with the 6-1, 4-6, 6-2 victory in the first round of the National Bank Open in Toronto.
READ: Diana Shnaider asserts mastery of Alex Eala in Tokyo quarterfinal
It's a chance for a rousing finish to what has been a memorable year for Eala who started the year ranked 53rd in the world.
But the Asian Swing hasn't been kind for the world no. 19, suffering early exits in Singapore, Wuhan, and Ningbo after her historic fourth round finish in the US Open.
Her quarterfinal finish in the Toray Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo was her best before falling to world no. 13 Diana Shnaider as throughout that stretch, Eala won only three of her seven matches.
Still, there's a big chance to atone for those setbacks in Hong Kong.
World no. 16 Sorana Cirstea of Romania is a the top seed in the 32-woman field that includes Leylah Fernandez of Canada, Talia Gibson of Australia, Liudmila Samsonova, Katie Boulter of Great Britain, Maya Joint of Australia, and Venus Williams.
The tournament has a USD283,347 prize pot.
If victorious, Eala will face the winner of the clash between world no. 87 Tereza Valentova of Czech Republic, who was the 2024 French Open girls champion, and world no. 405 Sun Xinran of China, while a potential clash against world no. 39 Wang Xinyu looms in the quarterfinals.
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