Singapore Open withdrawals: Record-setter makes it 9 exits as Alex Eala get...

Egyptian star tennis player Mayar Sherif has joined the long list of players who have withdrawn from the upcoming Singapore Open. For the 2026 edition of the tournament, 28 players will participate, with French Open Champion Mirra Andreeva being named as the top seed. Former Wimbledon and US Open finalist Amanda Anisimova is the second seed, while the Filipino teenage sensation and one of the most promising rising stars in world tennis Alex Eala is seeded third. The defending champion of the tournament, Elise Mertens from Belgium is seeded fourth.

When the Belgian won the tournament at the OCBC Arena last year, it featured 32 players and was a WTA 250 and it was played in late January to early February. After her win last year, Mertens said, “It became really tight at the end. It was a bit nerve-wracking. I had a good start, and I felt [Ann Li] was building up pretty well, so I’m very pleased that I could finish that.”

This year, the tournament has been upgraded to WTA 500 and consequently, the top four seeds will be given in the round one. For Eala, for instance, that means she gets a guaranteed 60 points in the WTA rankings and $18,045 in prize money. One of the players who featured last year in the tournament but will be missing in action this year is former world number 31 Mayer Sherif.

The Singapore Open kicks off the Asian Swing, which also includes tournaments in Seoul (South Korea), Beijing, Wuhan, Ningbo, Guangzhou (China) and Tokyo and Osaka (Japan).

Here is the full list of withdrawals from the Singapore Open 2026:

• Jessica Pegula (world No 3) → replaced by Kristina Mladenovic
• Diana Shnaider (world No 13) → replaced by Talia Gibson
• Sorana Cîrstea (world No 16) → replaced by Alycia Parks
• Anastasia Potapova (world No 24) → replaced by Linda Fruhvirtova
• Ekaterina Alexandrova (world No 27) → replaced by Sofia Costoulas
• Sára Bejlek (world No 28) → replaced by Tatiana Prozorova
• Ann Li (world No 29) → replaced by Aliaksandra Sasnovich
• Clara Tauson (world No 40) → replaced by Daria Kasatkina
• Mayar Sherif (world No 50) → replaced by qualifier