Update, 25 October 2026: In Sunday’s finals, Hunter Johnson beat Tama Shimabukuro 11-4, 6-11, 11-7 and Andie Dikosavljevic beat Judit Castillo 11-1, 11-5. Federico Staksrud and Hayden Patriquin beat Ben Johns and Gabriel Tardio 11-6, 11-8 in men’s doubles, Anna Bright and Anna Leigh Waters beat Tyra Hurricane Black and Jorja Johnson 11-6, 11-4 in women’s doubles, and Johns and Waters beat Bright and Patriquin 11-4, 11-3 in mixed. This report has also been corrected: the men’s doubles quarter-final and semi-final scores are now the official ones, and the doubles semi-final results have been added.
The short answer: Tama Shimabukuro beat Noe Khlif 11-8, 11-2 and Hunter Johnson came from a game down to beat Federico Staksrud 3-11, 11-8, 11-5 in Saturday’s Hong Kong Slam semi-finals at Kai Tak. Judit Castillo and Andie Dikosavljevic reached the women’s singles final, with neither of the top two seeds left.
Friday’s quarter-finals had already removed the top seeds in both singles draws. On Saturday neither second seed survived either, so Sunday’s singles finals were Shimabukuro against Johnson and Castillo against Dikosavljevic. Women’s doubles went the other way, with the top two pairs meeting for the title.
How did Shimabukuro beat Khlif?
Khlif had beaten top seed Christopher Haworth 13-11, 11-3 in the quarter-finals, his first win over the American after four defeats. Tama Shimabukuro had beaten Khlif 11-8, 11-5 in the Kuala Lumpur Cup final in September, and did it again here. The first game was close at 11-8; in the second, Shimabukuro held the Frenchman to two points.
The 15-year-old had beaten Grayson Goldin 11-9, 8-11, 11-6 in the quarter-finals. Reaching the final of the first PPA Tour Asia 1500 event added to a season that already included the Macao Open and Kuala Lumpur Cup singles titles.
Johnson recovers against Staksrud
Federico Staksrud won the first game 11-3 against Hunter Johnson, a day after beating Hong Kit Wong 8-11, 11-9, 12-10 from match point down, as covered in the quarter-final report. Johnson, who had beaten Connor Garnett 11-9, 11-4, took the second game 11-8 and the decider 11-5.
The win removed the second seed. With Haworth already out to Khlif, neither of the top two men’s seeds reached the final.
Castillo follows up her Christian upset
In Friday’s quarter-finals Judit Castillo trailed top seed Kaitlyn Christian 9-4 in the deciding game and saved two match points to win 11-9, 5-11, 12-10. She had also beaten Christian at the Australian Pickleball Cup the previous week.
On Saturday she beat Kiora Kunimoto, her women’s doubles partner this week, 11-8, 11-7. Their partnership had ended in the quarter-finals against Sofia Sewing and Catherine Parenteau.
Dikosavljevic concedes four points
Andie Dikosavljevic, who had knocked out second seed Chao Yi Wang 11-8, 11-6 on Friday and Lacy Schneemann 11-3, 11-4 before that, beat Sahra Dennehy 11-1, 11-3. Dennehy had beaten Rika Fujiwara in three games to reach the semi-finals.
From the round of 16 to the semi-finals, the Australian won six straight games and conceded 25 points. Castillo reached the final through a deciding game against Christian; Dikosavljevic had not needed a third game in those three rounds.
Who reached the women’s doubles final?
Top seeds Anna Leigh Waters and Anna Bright beat Sofia Sewing and Catherine Parenteau 11-4, 11-0. Sewing and Parenteau had lost the first game of their quarter-final to Castillo and Kunimoto 8-11 before winning 11-1, 11-1. With their 11-1, 11-8 quarter-final win over Dennehy and Danni-Elle Townsend, Waters and Bright conceded 13 points in two matches.
Second seeds Tyra Hurricane Black and Jorja Johnson lost the first game 4-11 to Rachel Rohrabacher and Parris Todd, then won 11-9, 11-2. On Friday they had beaten Mari Humberg and Cailyn Campbell 11-3, 7-11, 11-0, so they needed a deciding game on both days.
Men’s and mixed doubles semi-finals
Staksrud and Hayden Patriquin beat Connor Garnett and Dylan Frazier 11-9, 11-1 to reach the men’s doubles final, after an 11-4, 11-2 quarter-final win over Vietnam’s Do Minh Quan and Truong Vinh Hien. Ben Johns and Gabriel Tardio, who had beaten Collin Johns and Len Yang 11-3, 11-3 in the brothers’ quarter-final, beat Shimabukuro and JW Johnson 11-7, 11-6. Shimabukuro and JW Johnson had beaten Eric Oncins and Noe Khlif 11-4, 11-7.
In mixed doubles, Johns and Waters, who beat Jonathan Truong and Jessie Irvine 11-1, 11-0 in the quarter-finals, beat Ting Chieh Wei and Hunter Johnson 11-0, 11-1. Wei and Johnson had beaten Dylan Frazier and Kaitlyn Christian 5-11, 11-5, 11-9. Bright and Patriquin beat Sahra Dennehy and Shimabukuro 11-9, 11-5, then third seeds Jorja and JW Johnson 11-2, 9-11, 11-9. The siblings had beaten Oncins and Black 9-11, 11-8, 11-2.
| Division | Semi-final | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Men’s singles | Tama Shimabukuro bt Noe Khlif | 11-8, 11-2 |
| Men’s singles | Hunter Johnson bt Federico Staksrud | 3-11, 11-8, 11-5 |
| Women’s singles | Judit Castillo bt Kiora Kunimoto | 11-8, 11-7 |
| Women’s singles | Andie Dikosavljevic bt Sahra Dennehy | 11-1, 11-3 |
| Men’s doubles | Ben Johns / Gabriel Tardio bt Tama Shimabukuro / JW Johnson | 11-7, 11-6 |
| Men’s doubles | Federico Staksrud / Hayden Patriquin bt Connor Garnett / Dylan Frazier | 11-9, 11-1 |
| Women’s doubles | Anna Bright / Anna Leigh Waters bt Sofia Sewing / Catherine Parenteau | 11-4, 11-0 |
| Women’s doubles | Tyra Hurricane Black / Jorja Johnson bt Rachel Rohrabacher / Parris Todd | 4-11, 11-9, 11-2 |
| Mixed doubles | Ben Johns / Anna Leigh Waters bt Ting Chieh Wei / Hunter Johnson | 11-0, 11-1 |
| Mixed doubles | Anna Bright / Hayden Patriquin bt Jorja Johnson / JW Johnson | 11-2, 9-11, 11-9 |
What was at stake on finals day?
The Hong Kong Slam at Kai Tak Arena was the first 1500-level event in PPA Tour Asia history, with 1,500 ranking points and an advertised prize-money and payout package of up to US$1.1 million. The top seeds in both singles draws, Haworth and Christian, and women’s second seed Wang had all gone out before the finals, which were played on Sunday 25 October.
Frequently asked questions
Tama Shimabukuro, who beat Noe Khlif 11-8, 11-2, and Hunter Johnson, who beat Federico Staksrud 3-11, 11-8, 11-5.
Judit Castillo, who beat Kiora Kunimoto 11-8, 11-7, and Andie Dikosavljevic, who beat Sahra Dennehy 11-1, 11-3.
Hunter Johnson beat Tama Shimabukuro 11-4, 6-11, 11-7 in Sunday’s final.
Sources
- ThePickleBase: Hong Kong Slam 2026 finals and semi-finals, accessed 25 October 2026
- ThePickleHub: Hong Kong Slam 2026 results (official scores feed), accessed 25 October 2026
- Hong Kong Slam organisers: press releases, accessed 25 October 2026
- VOV: Hong Kong Slam champions, accessed 25 October 2026
- PPA Tour Asia: Hong Kong Slam tournament page, accessed 25 October 2026
Chris Beaumont
Founder and Editor-in-ChiefChris Beaumont is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of World Pickleball Magazine, published by World Pickleball Media Ltd. He follows the global game closely, reporting on news, developments, stories and tournaments from all five continents. He also hosts the World Pickleball…
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