Alex Eala has struggled to find form ever since the US Open this year.
Eala has enjoyed the best season of her career so far in 2026, winning her first WTA title in Washington D.C., reaching the fourth round of Wimbledon and breaking into the top 20.
However, it has not been so good for the Filipina since the US Open, highlighted by Eala’s first round defeat at the Wuhan Open to world number 217 Han Shi.
Former US Open finalist Greg Rusedski has been one of the biggest supporters of Eala throughout her rise up the ranks, but he has now admitted if he feels worried about her following recent results.
Which Grand Slam event is Alexandra Eala most likely to win? 🤔
Greg Rusedski has advice for Alex Eala after her first-round defeat in Wuhan
Since the US Open, where Eala reached the third round before losing to Iva Jovic, she has only played five singles matches at WTA tournaments in Singapore and Wuhan, as well as the Asian Games in Nagoya, Japan.
Eala has only won two of these matches, despite not facing a single player ranked inside the world’s top 80. This includes Eala losing to two players ranked outside the top 150 in Tatiana Prozorova (No.180) and the aforementioned Shi (No.217).
| Tournaments Alex Eala has played since the US Open | Players Alex Eala has faced since the US Open | Ranking of Eala’s opponent at the time | Result |
| Singapore Open | Tatiana Prozorova | No.180 | Prozorova beat Eala, 4-6 7-5 6-3 |
| Asian Games | Patcharin Cheapchandej | No.517 | Eala beat Cheapchandej, 6-1 6-0 |
| Asian Games | Joanna Garland | No.143 | Eala beat Garland, 7-5 6-0 |
| Asian Games | Xiyu Wang | No.85 | Wang beat Eala, 3-6 6-3 6-2 |
| Wuhan Open | Han Shi | No.217 | Shi beat Eala, 4-6 6-3 6-3 |
Despite these recent disappointments, Rusedski has stated that he is not worried about Eala and advised her to take a complete break away from the 2026 season. Rusedski has regularly highlighted Eala’s serve as a weakness in her game, and that is something he believes she should focus on during the off-season.
“There was huge demand for her after Wimbledon, after the US Open,” Rusedski said about Eala on his podcast. “We’ve seen her at the fashion shows for many big brands, we’ve seen her on podcasts outside of sports, a lot of television shows, so she’s trying to balance it out. It’s not surprising that this dip has happened.
“For me the most important period now is try to finish the year as best as you can, take a break, go on holiday, put your feet up, go home, spend some time with your family, with your brother, put your tennis rackets away, then slowly build up, make the changes in your game that everybody’s talking about, improve your serve, get it better, and then be fresh to start 2027.
“She’ll be seeded at the Australian Open and I’m expecting her to do really well in 2027. So this isn’t abnormal to have a little bit of a dip, and obviously from her point of view, very disappointed that she couldn’t get the gold medal at the Asian Games, because that was probably a big goal for her after the US Open.
“So it is not unusual to have a little bit of a dip, so I’m not worried about it, I know she’s going to bounce back, it’s just a question of whether she’s going to do it at the end of this year or at the beginning of 2027.”
Eala still has a chance to finish her 2026 season on a high, as she is entered into tournaments in Ningbo, Tokyo and Hong Kong.
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