Alex Eala has issued an injury update after she struggled in a one-sided loss to Claire Liu in the final at the 2026 Hong Kong Tennis Open.

No 2 seed Eala suffered a crushing 6-3, 6-0 defeat to 102nd-ranked Liu in the title match in Hong Kong on Sunday.

Eala took a medical timeout to receive treatment on her right knee when trailing 3-4 in the opening set, and her movement was clearly hampered.

Having broken Liu to take an early 2-1 lead, Eala lost the last nine games of the match from 3-3 in the opening set.

The Filipina played with tape on her right knee throughout her run in Hong Kong, but she dismissed concerns she was injured after her first round win against Emerson Jones.

Eala was playing her third WTA Tour final, having lost the 2025 Eastbourne Open championship match and won the final at this year’s Washington Open in August.

The 21-year-old will jump two places to a new career-best ranking position of world No 15 when the WTA Rankings update on Monday.

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In her press conference after the final at the WTA 250 event, Eala was asked about the medical timeout for her knee and how the issue affected her in the match.

“Yeah, I had a bit of pain in my knee for a short period of time there,” Eala replied.

“And I just strapped up my leg, and it got a little better. Less pain.”

Eala began the press conference by expressing her pride in what she achieved in 2026.

“I am incredibly proud,” she said. “I am so, so proud of everything that’s happened, that my team and I have achieved, and how we’ve worked this year.

“So I’m just going to take this time to really process it, because it’s been a lot. So I’m very grateful.”

The Quezon City-born star also explained what she meant by saying “this is only the beginning” in her trophy ceremony speech in Hong Kong.

“I mean, I’m 21. So, it’s the beginning of my career. I’ve been playing ever since I was four,” Eala said.

“But even then, I still feel like there’s a long, long road ahead of me, which I am so excited for, excited to continue the journey with my team.

“And yeah, I’m very, very grateful for them, and everything we do, we do together.”