Alex Eala among 13 first-time WTA title winners in 2026 after Washington triumph

Alex Eala won her first WTA singles title in Washington in July, beating Jessica Pegula in the final. The Filipina is one of 13 players to claim a maiden WTA title in 2026, and she is ending the year ranked inside the top 15 after reaching the fourth round at Wimbledon. The 21-year-old lost the Hong Kong final to Claire Liu later in the season.

New faces in the winners' circle

The season has also been won by established names such as Elena Rybakina, Aryna Sabalenka and Coco Gauff, but several newcomers have made their mark. Sara Bejlek opened the list at the Abu Dhabi Open, coming through qualifying to win her first title at 20. She has since continued to impress, beating Sabalenka on her way to the semi-finals in Cincinnati.

Several teenagers are on the list too. Lilli Tagger, 18, won the Prague Open, while Kristina Liutova claimed the Memphis Open at 16, in the first and only WTA Tour event of her career so far. Harriet Dart, meanwhile, won the Guangzhou Open at 30, showing that the list also includes players who broke through later in their careers.

Chwalinska's Wuhan success

The biggest title of the group belongs to Maja Chwalinska. The 25-year-old had already enjoyed a breakthrough season, reaching the Roland Garros final after coming through qualifying. She backed that up on the Asian swing by winning the WTA 1000 event in Wuhan. She beat Iga Swiatek, Iva Jovic and Maria Sakkari along the way, then came back from a set down to defeat British player Sonay Kartal in the final.

The full list

Other first-time winners this season include Cristina Bucsa (Merida Open, aged 28), Petra Marcinko (Morocco Open, 20), Robin Montgomery (Rosmalen Open, 21), Diane Parry (Monterrey Open, 23), Kaitlin Quevedo (Sao Paulo Open, 20) and Kimberly Birrell (Korea Open, 28). Claire Liu, who won the Hong Kong Open at 26, completes the group.

Highest-ranked player still without a title

While many players have won their first title this year, world number 26 Anna Kalinskaya is still waiting for hers, making her the highest-ranked player on tour yet to win a tournament. The Russian has been ranked as high as world number 11, but she has never won a title above WTA 125 level. She has come close, reaching three finals. She served for the WTA 1000 title in Dubai in 2024, losing to Jasmine Paolini, and had five championship points against Pegula in the Berlin final the same year.

Kalinskaya has not reached another final or semi-final in 2026. Her best result this year came at Roland Garros, where she reached her second career Grand Slam quarter-final before losing to Chwalinska. She is not the only top 30 player still without a title. World number 29 Nikola Bartunkova has not yet reached a final, despite a breakthrough season.

Rybakina leads the titles

Rybakina has won the most singles titles in 2026, with four, including the Australian Open and the US Open. She has withdrawn from the WTA Finals. Sabalenka or Mirra Andreeva could still draw level with her if either wins the year-end tournament.