Inside the Shenzhen Open
Breakthrough champions, dramatic comebacks and dominant performances
By Jacob Burton • September 2, 2026 • 10 min read
PPA Tour Asia’s latest stop
The PPA Tour Asia landed in Shenzhen, China from August 20 to 23 for the Skechers Shenzhen Open, and it did not disappoint. There were first-time gold medal winners, repeat champions, underdogs and complete bracket domination throughout the tournament.
Across five divisions, Shenzhen delivered a mix of unexpected breakthroughs and familiar names finding their way back to the top. Grayson Goldin battled back to capture his first PPA Tour gold medal, while Chao Yi Wang added another title to her growing collection. In doubles, established champions shared the spotlight with new partnerships and dominant performances that left little doubt about who controlled the court.
The results also reflected the increasingly international field competing across the PPA Tour Asia. Players from throughout Asia and beyond filled the brackets, setting up matchups that brought different playing styles and rising talent together on the same stage.
By the time the final medals were decided, Shenzhen had produced everything from dramatic comebacks to straight- game victories and breakthrough performances, giving fans plenty to remember from the tour’s latest stop in China.
Goldin Completes the Comeback
The men’s singles gold medal match featured Hien Truong from Vietnam, the No. 28 ranked men’s player in the world, and Grayson Goldin, the American who is No. 56 in the world. Goldin breezed through his matches leading up to the final, going undefeated, including a 2-0 (11-4, 11-8) semifinal victory over No. 13 Tama Shimabukuro.
Hien Truong also cruised through the round of 16 and quarterfinals, winning both matches 2-0. He then dropped the second game of his best-of-three semifinal against Adam Harvey before winning the third 11-8 to secure his spot in the final.
In the first game of the gold medal match, Hien Truong got out to a quick 6-0 lead, as Goldin struggled to keep his serve in play, with many going wide or long. He also struggled with Truong’s shots, forcing Goldin to cover significant ground. Goldin put together a small run toward the end of the game, but ultimately it wasn’t enough as Hien took the match 11-4.
To open the second game, Hien once again took a huge early lead, getting out to an 8-2 lead. Goldin strung together a couple points in a row, bringing the score to 8-4 as he held strong on the kitchen line, putting Hien under heavy pressure to perform. After Hien brought it back and tacked on another point, Goldin found an extra gear. Down 9-4 and facing the loss, Goldin strung together seven straight points to take the victory and force the third game. His serve grew stronger, and he moved Truong back and forth during rallies, forcing him to work for every point.
In the final match, Hien once again took an 8-2 lead, as he outplayed Goldin early again. Goldin strung together three straight points to bring it down to 8-5, as he got back into his rhythm from the second game, but then Hien went on a quick run to push it to the championship point at 10-5. With his back against the wall the entire time, Goldin brought the score all the way back to take the lead 11-10 without even losing the serve once. After coming all the way back to earn his own championship point, Goldin used Truong’s return to send him in the wrong direction and secure his first PPA Tour gold medal. Throughout the match, Goldin played with a smile on his face. Whether he was trailing or leading, he appeared to be having fun and ultimately secured what he came to Shenzhen looking for.
Wang Delivers When It Matters
For the women’s singles bracket, the gold medal match featured No. 11 Chao Yi Wang against No. 73 Rika Fujiwara. Fujiwara won her first two matches 2-0 before narrowly escaping the semifinal against No. 20 Sahra Dennehy 2-1. The semifinal was tightly contested, with the scores being 11-8, 11-9, 12-10. Wang struggled early in the round of 16, losing the second game 11-1, before eventually taking the match 2-1 with an 11-7 victory in the third game. She then dominated in the quarterfinals, winning 2-0 before needing a 13-11 third game win to book her spot in the gold medal match.
Wang took an early lead in the first game 6-1, and while Fujiwara was able to put together a nice run to come back to 6-4, Wang proved to be too strong and scored five straight to take the first game 11-4.
In the second game, Wang took another quick lead, up 6-0, but it became a much closer game as Fujiwara would not go without a fight. She pulled within 7-3 and eventually closed the gap to 9-8 after battling through some tough rallies. While it was a hard-fought match, Wang ended up taking the victory, winning the next two points and taking home her sixth PPA Tour gold medal.
She may have struggled more than Fujiwara throughout the whole tournament, but when it mattered most, Wang stepped up and delivered, winning the match 2-0.
Johns and Yang Take Control
The men’s doubles gold medal match featured Collin Johns and Len Yang, who are ranked No. 30 and No. 21 respectively, and they faced off against Hong Kit Wong and Eunggwon Kim, No. 16 and No. 19 respectively.
Wong and Kim dominated their round of 16 matchup, winning 2-0 by scores of 11-3 and 11-2. They then lost the first game of the quarterfinal 11-7, before winning the next two games 11-7 and 11-8 to advance to the semifinals 2-1. They faced off against Tama Shimabukuro and Joey Wild, and advanced to the finals 2-0 after winning 11-8 and 11-7.
Johns and Yang, on the other hand, won their first two matches 2-0, with only a couple of close games. They then lost badly in the first game of the semifinal against Harrison Brown and Mitchell Hargreaves 11-2. They then took the second game 11-6, before dominating 11-1 to advance to the gold medal match.
Wong and Kim started hot, getting out to a 5-0 lead, before Johns and Yang scored four unanswered to pull within 5-4. Johns and Yang looked like they wanted to play slow and methodically throughout the first game, forcing their opponents into rallies at the kitchen, waiting for them to make a mistake. This strategy proved successful, as they scored five straight points to take the first game 11-7.
Wong and Kim increased the tempo early in the second game, jumping out to a 6-2 lead, but Johns and Yang did not back down. At 6-6, one extended rally featured repeated lobs from Wong and Kim, overheads from Yang and eventually a dink exchange at the kitchen before Wong and Kim finally won the point. The teams continued trading points and after another long rally, Johns and Yang had it tied 8-8. They went on a final run of a few points, taking the gold medal 2-0 after a final score of 11-8. This was Yang’s fifth PPA Tour gold medal and Johns’ third.
Tam and Huynh Find the Winning Formula
In the women’s doubles, HO Tam and Sophia Nhi Huynh, No. 57 and No. 52, respectively, faced off against Lingwei Kong and Selina Turulja, No. 30 and No. 75, for the gold medal. Kong and Turulja cruised their way to the finals, winning their round of 16, quarterfinals, and semifinals matches 2-0 each. Tam and Huynh won their round of 16 matchup 2-0, before losing the first game of the quarterfinals to pickleball prodigy Elsie Hendershot and Aiko Yoshitomi, before taking the next two matches to win 2-1. They then dominated the semifinals 11-3 and 11-4.
The first game was a back-and-forth battle between the two teams, starting off 4-4 before Kong and Turulja took a 7-4 lead. Tam’s powerful left hand proved particularly effective in this match as they brought it back to 7-7, and they continued to go back and forth for the final few points before Tam and Huynh took the game 11-9.
The second match was not nearly as close. Tam and Huynh could not get into their rhythm throughout the game, while Kong and Turulja were able to keep pushing them back, ultimately taking the second game 11-3 to tie the match 1-1.
Tam and Huynh started off much better in the final game, jumping out to a 5-1 lead, combining strong attacks and slow dinks to get to that point. They continued to play well, extending their lead to an 8-4 game, before Kong and Turulja went on a small run to bring it back to 9-6. The left-right combination of Tam and Huynh ultimately proved too much, as they captured the gold medal with 2-1 with a 11-6 victory in the deciding game.
Shimabukuro and Dennehy Dominate
In mixed doubles, No. 13 Sahra Dennehy and No. 20 Tama Shimabukuro faced off against No. 75 Sophia Nhi Huynh and No. 28 Hien Truong for gold. Leading up to the final, Dennehy and Shimabukuro had dropped only one game, cruising through the round of 16 before losing the second game of their quarterfinal and then comfortably winning their semifinal. Huynh and Truong started their run in the round of 32, winning two close games to take it 2-0, before winning the round of 16, quarterfinal, and semifinal matchups 2-1 each, so they had a much more difficult route to the finals than Tama and Sahra.
The first game was very hard-fought early on, with Huynh and Truong taking a 5-3 lead. It was an extremely fast-paced, back-and-forth first opening half, with the duos exchanging points and serves. With Shimabukuro and Dennehy leading 7-6, Shimabukuro took over, showing his aggression and strength to push the team to an 11-6 victory.
The second game reflected the bracket domination that Tama and Sahra showed throughout their run. They both played extremely well. Shimabukuro’s aggression and technical skill, combined with Dennehy’s fundamentals, dinking and strong returns, proved too much for Huynh and Truong. Tama and Sahra won the game 11-1 with smiles on their faces to take the gold medal. The medal was Sahra’s seventh and Tama’s sixth.
Shenzhen Leaves Its Mark
With first-time PPA Tour gold medal winners and returning champions, the Shenzhen Open provided pickleball fans around the world with plenty of exciting competition.
From Grayson Goldin’s remarkable comeback to another strong showing from young standout Tama Shimabukuro, Shenzhen produced both breakthrough moments and continued success from familiar names.
About Jacob Burton
Jacob Burton is an editorial intern based in West Chester, PA. A student at West Chester University, he covers tournaments and other stories in pickleball. His work has also been featured in The Quad newspaper at West Chester University. When he isn’t writing, you can find him on the soccer field playing his childhood sport.
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