PPA Tour Australia Pickleball Cup Tournament Preview

The PPA Tour heads Down Under this week for the 2026 WALKER Australia Pickleball Cup, taking place October 14–18 at the Queensland Tennis Centre in Brisbane, Australia.

The event brings together some of the biggest names on the PPA Tour and many of Australia and New Zealand's top professionals for one of the most significant international tournaments in pickleball history.

With more than $500,000 in prize money and 1,500 ranking points available to each champion, this is the largest prize purse ever offered at a professional pickleball tournament in Australia.

The draws feature some interesting international partnerships, several potential early-round upsets, and plenty of opportunities for Australian players to make a statement against established American professionals.

Here is everything you need to know heading into the Australia Pickleball Cup.

Three Storylines to Watch

1. Can the Australian Players Make Some Noise on Home Soil?

The Australia Cup provides a rare opportunity for Australia's top players to compete against established American professionals without traveling halfway around the world.

Players like (2) Sahra Dennehy, (7) Andie Dikosavljevic, (13) Mitch Hargreaves, and (25) Joey Wild in their respective singles draws will be looking to capitalize on the opportunity.

There are also several intriguing partnerships pairing Australian players with established American professionals, including (7) Mitch Hargreaves/Collin Johns in men's doubles and (5) Federico Staksrud/Danni-Elle Townsend in mixed doubles.

How many Australians can make it to the weekend?

2. Some Very Interesting New Partnerships

Men's doubles features several combinations we don't regularly see on the PPA Tour.

(1) Gabe Tardio/Hayden Patriquin (St. Louis Shock teammates) headline the field, while (2) Federico Staksrud/Christian Alshon, (3) Tama Shimabukuro/JW Johnson, and (4) Dylan Frazier/Connor Garnett create an interesting collection of potential semifinalists.

In women's doubles, (1) Tyra Black/Jorja Johnson and (2) Parris Todd/Danni-Elle Townsend (former Columbus Sliders teammates) are on opposite sides of the bracket.

The biggest question is which of these partnerships can find chemistry quickly enough to make a championship run.

3. Huge Ranking Points Available With Two PPA Events Happening Simultaneously

The Australia Cup is a PPA1500 event, while the Virginia Beach Open is a PPA1000 tournament.

With both tournaments happening during the same week, players had to decide which event offered the better opportunity to collect ranking points.

With the PPA World Championships approaching in November, a strong performance in Brisbane could provide a significant boost in the rankings.

Weather Outlook for the Australia Pickleball Cup

The weather could be a factor throughout the tournament, with rain in the forecast on four of the five days.

Wednesday looks like the warmest day, with a high of 79°F and a chance of thunderstorms. Thursday looks like the best day for pickleball, with mostly cloudy skies and only an 18% chance of rain.

Friday through Sunday could be more challenging, with morning showers possible each day. Hopefully the rain holds off and the tournament can stay on schedule.

How to Watch the Australia Pickleball Cup

All times listed are Eastern Daylight Time (EDT). Australia is 14 hours ahead of Eastern time during the tournament.

Tuesday, October 13 – Round of 64 and Round of 32

• 8pm–4am ET – PPA Tour YouTube

Wednesday, October 14 – Round of 16

• 8pm–4am ET – PPA Tour YouTube

Thursday, October 15 – Quarterfinals

• 8pm–4am ET – PPA Tour YouTube

Friday, October 16 – Semifinals

• 8pm–4am ET – PPA Tour YouTube

Saturday, October 17 – Championships

• 8pm–2am ET – PPA Tour YouTube

The listed broadcasts run into the following morning in the United States. In Brisbane, the corresponding sessions begin at 10am Wednesday through Sunday.

Official PPA Tour broadcast schedule

Women's Singles

Top Storylines

• (1) Kaitlyn Christian enters as the top seed and could face (6) Yufei Long in the quarterfinals. Christian has plenty of experience playing at the highest level, but Long could make that an interesting matchup.
• (2) Sahra Dennehy has a favorable path into the quarterfinals, where (5) Rika Fujiwara could be waiting. Playing on home soil adds another element to Dennehy's championship aspirations.
• (3) Kiora Kunimoto could face (7) Andie Dikosavljevic in the semifinals if both advance. Kunimoto is playing some very good singles pickleball, but Dikosavljevic will have the home crowd behind her.
• (4) Judit Castillo could encounter (15) Danni-Elle Townsend in the Round of 16. The winner may eventually face (8) Hannah Blatt in the quarterfinals.

Predictions

Semifinalists: (1) Kaitlyn Christian, (4) Judit Castillo, (2) Sahra Dennehy, and (3) Kiora Kunimoto.

Champion: Kaitlyn Christian defeats Sahra Dennehy in the final.

Men's Singles

Top Storylines

• (1) Federico Staksrud enters as the top seed and could face (13) Mitch Hargreaves in the Round of 16. A potential quarterfinal against (6) Zane Ford would be a much tougher test.
• (2) Hunter Johnson is on the opposite side of the bracket, where either (8) Hien Truong or (9) Dylan Frazier could be waiting in the quarterfinals. Johnson will want some revenge after getting booted early in the Chicago Cup by Emi Brunel.
• (3) Christian Alshon has an intriguing potential quarterfinal against (5) Tama Shimabukuro. Both players have the offensive ability to take control of matches, making this one of the more interesting potential matchups on Friday.
• (4) Connor Garnett could face (20) Tyson McGuffin in the Round of 16, with (7) Hong Kit Wong another possible obstacle in his section of the bracket.

Predictions

Semifinalists: (1) Federico Staksrud, (7) Hong Kit Wong, (2) Hunter Johnson, and (3) Christian Alshon.

Champion: Hunter Johnson defeats Hong Kit Wong in the final.

Mixed Doubles

Top Storylines

• (1) Jorja Johnson/JW Johnson enter as the top seeds and could face (6) Sahra Dennehy/Tama Shimabukuro in the quarterfinals. That would be an excellent early test for the Johnson siblings.
• (2) Jessie Irvine/Hayden Patriquin are an intriguing combination, but could face (5) Federico Staksrud/Danni-Elle Townsend in the quarterfinals. That potential matchup features four players with very different playing styles.
• (3) Parris Todd/Christian Alshon find themselves in the same quarter as (9) Andie Dikosavljevic/Joey Wild. The Australian pairing could make things interesting if both teams advance.

Predictions

Semifinalists: (1) Jorja Johnson/JW Johnson, (4) Tyra Black/Gabe Tardio, (2) Jessie Irvine/Hayden Patriquin, and (3) Parris Todd/Christian Alshon.

Champion: Jorja Johnson and JW Johnson defeat Parris Todd and Christian Alshon in the final.

Women's Doubles

Top Storylines

• (1) Tyra Black/Jorja Johnson headline the field, but could face (5) Judit Castillo/Kiora Kunimoto in the quarterfinals. Castillo and Kunimoto have the ability to make that a competitive matchup.
• (2) Parris Todd/Danni-Elle Townsend are one of the most intriguing partnerships in the draw. They could encounter (8) Jamie Haas/Kei Sawaki in the quarterfinals before a potential semifinal against (3) Sahra Dennehy/Jessie Irvine.
• (3) Sahra Dennehy/Jessie Irvine have a possible quarterfinal against (7) Aiko Yoshitomi/Sophia Huynh. Dennehy and Irvine will be looking to take advantage of their complementary playing styles.

Predictions

Semifinalists: (1) Tyra Black/Jorja Johnson, (4) Nok Yui Tang/Yufei Long (2) Parris Todd/Danni-Elle Townsend, and (3) Sahra Dennehy/Jessie Irvine.

Champion: Tyra Black and Jorja Johnson defeat Sahra Dennehy and Jessie Irvine in the final.

Men's Doubles

Top Storylines

• (1) Gabe Tardio/Hayden Patriquin enter as the top seeds, with (5) Eunggwon Kim/Hong Kit Wong a potential quarterfinal opponent. It will be interesting to see how the two talented young Americans work together.
• (2) Federico Staksrud/Christian Alshon headline the opposite half of the bracket and could face (8) Kenta Miyoshi/Tom Protzek in the quarterfinals. Staksrud and Alshon bring plenty of singles firepower to the partnership.
• (3) Tama Shimabukuro/JW Johnson could face (6) Hunter Johnson/Tyson McGuffin in the quarterfinals. That matchup would feature two of the Johnson brothers competing against one another.
• (4) Dylan Frazier/Connor Garnett have an interesting potential quarterfinal against (7) Mitch Hargreaves/Collin Johns. Hargreaves will be looking to make a deep run in front of the Australian crowd alongside one of the most experienced doubles players in professional pickleball.

Predictions

Semifinalists: (1) Gabe Tardio/Hayden Patriquin, (3) Tama Shimabukuro/JW Johnson, (2) Federico Staksrud/Christian Alshon, and (4) Dylan Frazier/Connor Garnett.

Champion: Gabe Tardio and Hayden Patriquin defeat Federico Staksrud and Christian Alshon in the final.