Skechers Shenzhen Open 2026: Draws Are Out, and a Hometown Hero Right in the Thick of It
The brackets have landed for the Skechers Shenzhen Open 2026, and there’s a genuinely packed few days ahead before the first serve even lands. Here’s what’s worth keeping an eye on.
Start with the workload nobody else in the field is carrying. Thirteen-year-old Elsie Hendershot has entered three separate events—seeded fourth in Women’s Doubles alongside Aiko Yoshitomi, eighth in Mixed Doubles paired with Zane Navratil, and into the Women’s Singles draw on top of both. She’s already made a name for herself back home through Major League Pickleball this season, but Asia has been a tougher nut to crack, with previous stops at the Sansan Fukuoka Open 2025 and the MB Hanoi Cup 2026 yet to yield the marquee result her form back home would suggest is coming. Three shots at it this week gives her considerably better odds than she’s had before.
A Debutant Walks Straight Into the Deep End
There’s a new name sitting at the very top of the Men’s Singles draw, and it’s not one anyone can afford to overlook. Roscoe Bellamy makes his PPA Tour Asia debut this week and goes straight in as the top seed—no easing in, no lower-tier stepping stone first. Ranked World No. 6 in Men’s Singles and No. 23 overall, he’s arguably the highest-ranked player to debut on the Asian circuit all season, which makes his first match here rather more high-pressure than most debuts tend to be. Unfamiliar courts, a brand-new region, and top billing from the very first ball.
He won’t get an easy path through it, either. This is shaping up as one of the toughest Men’s Singles fields of the year. Zane Ford sits at No. 2, three-time champion Jack Wong Hong-kit lurks at No. 3 still chasing yet another title, home favourite Hien Truong holds No. 5, and Adam Harvey arrives at #6 fresh off gold in Ho Chi Minh City. That’s a genuinely brutal gauntlet stacked directly behind the newcomer, and realistically, any one of those five could walk away with the title.
The Women’s Field Might Be Even Deeper
If anything, Women’s Singles looks stronger still. Chao Yi Wang returns to the tour, and returns straight to the top seed—a comeback worth noting on its own. Behind her sits a genuine murderers’ row: Sahra Dennehy at No. 2, Yufei Long at No. 3, Rika Fujiwara at No. 4. Four players in the top four alone who all have a legitimate case for gold.
Long carries the added weight of playing this one at home. Shenzhen is where she’s from, and she arrives with real momentum behind her too, coming off a double-crown weekend in Singapore and another Women’s Doubles gold in Ho Chi Minh City. Expect the crowd noise to reflect exactly that when she takes the court.
Qualifying and the Round of 32 get underway Thursday, August 20, at 9:00am (GMT+8).
