Eala all set for showdown vs Russian
SINGAPORE—Alex Eala ripped through forehand topspins and chased down drop shots on Tuesday.
Eala played with fire in her eyes, holding nothing back.
And this was only practice.
Her opponent, Russia’s Tatiana Prozorova, will be bracing for that same tenacious Eala in their round-of-16 match on Thursday at OCBC Arena center court.
“There’s a lot of challenges [facing Eala]. She’s very good. I mean, she’s like an octopus, you know. She runs side to side, and she puts a lot of pressure on the opponent,” Prozorova said.
Prozorova will also face a hostile crowd—something that she didn’t have to deal with when she overcame Belgium’s Sofia Costoulas, 5-7, 7-6(2), 6-2, in the first round on Tuesday.
“Well, yes, but I also love to play in front of a big crowd. I had experience with this, so I really love it,” she said.
Expectations are high for the No. 3 seed Eala to win a second WTA 500 crown that could soon be followed by a historic gold medal at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games 2026 in Japan.
An easier path to the final has also opened up for Eala following the last-minute withdrawal of World No. 11 Amanda Anisimova.
The 21-year-old Eala was projected to meet the second-seeded Anisimova in the semifinals, but a left wrist injury forced the American to pull out a day before her match against Talia Gibson.
Anisimova, who knocked off Eala in the round of 32 in Cincinnati last month, was replaced by lucky loser Viktoria Morvayova of Slovakia.
The 25-year-old Anisimova became the 11th player to pull out of the WTA 500 hard-court event, joining the likes of World No. 3 Jessica Pegula, Diana Shnaider and Sorana Cirstea.
Despite the high-profile exits, Eala can’t afford to take the draw lightly.
