Top seeds Alexandra Eala and Sorana Cirstea advanced to the quarter-finals of the Prudential Hong Kong Tennis Open 2026 on Thursday (Nov. 5), while HK's Cody Wong Hong-yi made history by becoming the first local player to reach the tournament's doubles semi-finals.
Romanian Cirstea, the No. 1 seed, overcame a difficult opening set to defeat Mary Stoiana, who had previously knocked out Venus Williams, 7-5, 6-1 on Centre Court at Victoria Park.
The 36-year-old was trailing 5-2 in the first set before fighting back to take it 7-5. She then raised her level in the second set to seal the victory.
"It was a tough match, especially at the beginning. Mary started really well, and I was 5-2 down, and I had to dig deep in order to win that first set. I was able to swing more freely in the second and be more brave to secure the win," Cirstea said.
She will face Alexandra Shubladze in the quarter-finals.
Second seed Eala of the Philippines also secured her place in the last eight after a hard-fought 6-4, 7-6(6) victory over Czech player Tereza Valentova. The left-handed Filipina will next meet Croatia's Antonia Ruzic, who defeated sixth seed Wang Xinyu of China 6-3, 4-6, 6-2.
Eala said mental strength was crucial to her victory.
"There were things that I deliberately tried to do differently tonight. That's everyone's goal to try to improve every time they step onto court, right? I really did try to stay present, but it proved to be a little difficult. But I got through, and I think mental fortitude was the key in today's match for me," she said.
Ruzic continued her impressive run with the win over Wang, saying she focused on staying present during crucial points and converting her break-point opportunities.
"I tried to stay present in the moment on crucial points and was able to convert the break-point opportunities I had. I liked the way I served today; it was an amazing match overall," the Croatian said.
Reflecting on her 2026 season, Wang described it as a challenging year and said learning to be honest with herself about her emotions had been one of her most valuable lessons.
"It is okay to feel down or disappointed, or to feel vulnerable," she said, adding that players cannot expect to perform at 100 percent every week or improve constantly. She also stressed the importance of acknowledging such feelings and sharing them with people they trust.
In the women's doubles, Hong Kong, China's Wong and China's Jiang Xinyu defeated Chinese Taipei's Cho I-hsuan and Cho Yi-tsen 6-3, 6-4 to reach the semi-finals.
The victory marked Wong's first-ever WTA Tour semi-final appearance and made her the first HK player to reach the doubles semi-finals at the Hong Kong Open.
"To reach my first-ever WTA 250 semi-finals on the WTA Tour, and doing it at my home tournament, I am a little emotional and very happy. I saw a lot of my friends, and family courtside supporting me, which does not happen at tournaments elsewhere, and to do it in front of them, I am very happy," the 24-year-old said.
Wong also praised her partnership with Jiang, saying the pair had performed even better than in their previous round by remaining consistent throughout the match.
Meanwhile, Venus Williams and China's Xu Yifan were eliminated from the women's doubles after losing to fourth seeds Jesika Maleckova and Miriam Skoch of the Czech Republic.
Williams and Xu took the opening set 6-4 but lost the second 6-2 before going down 10-4 in the deciding super tiebreak.
All four women's singles quarter-finals will be played on Friday, Nov. 6.
Zeynep Sonmez will face Claire Liu in the first match on Centre Court, followed by Cirstea's encounter with Shubladze, scheduled to start no earlier than 4:30 pm.
In the evening session, No. 4 seed Maria Sakkari will take on qualifier Aliaksandra Sasnovich, followed by Eala's quarter-final clash with Ruzic. The evening matches are scheduled to begin no earlier than 6:30 pm.
The main draw of the Prudential Hong Kong Tennis Open 2026 is being held at Victoria Park Tennis Stadium from Nov. 2 to 8. The tournament is an "M" Mark event, a designation awarded by the Major Sports Events Committee to recognise major sporting events that enhance Hong Kong's status as Asia's sports event capital.
Tickets for the tournament from Friday, Nov. 6, to Sunday, Nov. 8, have sold out.
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