Kiora Kunimoto is having a phenomenal season, with major breakthroughs across all divisions. Now, the 18-year-old takes her talents to Hong Kong, where she reached the quarterfinals in women’s doubles with Judit Castillo and looks to reach her first PPA Tour Asia women’s singles final.
The Hang Seng Bank Hong Kong Slam runs October 19-25 at Kai Tak Arena, closing out the 2026 PPA Tour Asia calendar. Kunimoto enters the tournament as the No. 4 seed in singles and looks to build on her recent success.
Kunimoto eyes first PPA Asia final
The last time Kunimoto competed in PPA Asia was at the Tokyo Open, where she ended the tournament with a bronze medal. Now, Kunimoto is in position to make her first PPA Asia final in Hong Kong.
Kunimoto breezed through the first three rounds of the tournament, with two-game wins over Yunqi He, Danni-Elle Townsend, and Aiko Yoshitomi. In the quarterfinals, Kunimoto overcame one of Asia’s top talents in Yufei Long in a three game thriller. After losing the first game 8-11, Kunimoto came back with tricky shotmaking and angles to win the next two games, 8-11, 11-6, 11-3.
Kunimoto now sets up a clash with her doubles partner Judit Castillo for a chance to reach the final in Hong Kong.
A quarterfinal finish for Kunimoto and Judit Castillo
Kunimoto and Judit Castillo teamed up in women’s doubles and battled their way to the quarterfinals in one of the deepest draws of the PPA Tour Asia season. After defeating the Australian-British duo of Kaitlynn Hart and Katie Morris in two games, the pair pulled off a Round of 16 upset over Lacy Schneeman and Jame Wei, winning 11–8, 11–3.
In the quarterfinals, they faced the formidable pairing of Sofia Sewing and Catherine Parenteau but fell just short in three games.
Kunimoto has made improving her doubles game a priority this year, and she continues to show just how dangerous she can be on the doubles court.
Tune in
Catch Kiora on Semifinal Saturday on the PPA Tour Asia livestream!