Alex Eala aims for second WTA 500 title at Singapore Tennis Open

Before she bids to deliver another gold medal for the Philippines, tennis star Alex Eala first begins her Asian swing at the Singapore Tennis Open -- looking to add another WTA 500 title to what has already been a breakthrough season.

Now ranked a career-high world No. 18, Eala enters the tournament as the third seed and has a first-round bye, putting her in a position to make another deep run when the tournament begins Monday at OCBC Arena.

However, it is a far different position from the one Eala found herself in at the start of the year.

The 21-year-old has spent much of 2026 turning milestones into a regular occurrence. She reached the second week of Wimbledon for the first time -- defeated defending champion Iga Świątek on Centre Court - and, a month later, became the first Filipina to win a WTA Tour-level singles title when she won in Washington.

Eala also had her best showing at the US Open, where she fell short in the third round in a classic match against fellow rising star Iva Jovic, 5-7, 6-3, 5-7.

As the Filipina now puts her game in notice with these recent breakthroughs, Singapore becomes the next challenge to prove that she belongs among the best.

The tournament itself has also taken a step forward.

After returning to the WTA calendar as a 250-level event in 2025, the Singapore Open has been upgraded to a WTA 500 this year -- making it the opening competition of the Asian swing.

Although notable names like world No. 3 Jessica Pegula, Diana Shnaider, Sorana Cîrstea, Ekaterina Alexandrova and Anastasia Potapova all withdrew from the tournament after initially being slated to appear, the 28-player singles draw still has stiff competition led by world No. 5 Mirra Andreeva, world No. 11 Amanda Anisimova and defending champion Elise Mertens.

As the third seed, Eala will avoid an early clash with the aforementioned top players and No. 4 seed Mertens.

She will open her campaign in the round of 16 against the winner of the matchup between Tatiana Prozorova and Sofia Costoulas, who actually faced one another in the maiden WTA 125 Philippine Open.

If Eala makes it past this round, a familiar test could stand her way in 2024 Paris Olympics silver medalist Donna Vekić. The good news is that Eala has won twice against the Croatian this season in the ASB Classic semifinals, 4-6, 6-4, 6-4, and at the Berlin Open, 7-5, 6-4.

Having already shown that she can go toe-to-toe with and beat some of the best players on tour, Eala's path to another WTA 500 title in Singapore is certainly within reach.

And with the Asian Games waiting on the other, a deep run could give the 21-year old valuable matches and momentum as she prepared to once again carry the Philippine flag on the international stage.