LIM JONGHOON AND SHIN YUBIN CLAIM MIXED DOUBLES CROWN AS US SMASH 2026 DELIVERS ANOTHER DAY OF DAMAGE

FIRST TITLE DECIDED IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA AS ZHU YULING, TOMOKAZU HARIMOTO

AND HUGO CALDERANO FALL BEFORE THE SINGLES QUARTERFINALS

ONTARIO, CALIF., JULY 4, 2026 – Day 6 at US Smash 2026 came with the first title of the week, the full weight of a Grand Smash Final, and another reminder that nobody is safe once the draw reaches the sharp end.

The Mixed Doubles crowns were decided inside Maverick ☆ Arena, where Lim Jonghoon and Shin Yubin defeated Wang Chuqin and Sun Yingsha 3-2 (11-9, 6-11, 7-11, 11-7, 11-8) to become the first champions of US Smash 2026.

It was a final that refused to follow convention. Lim and Shin struck first, Wang and Sun answered by taking the next two games, and suddenly the sport’s two Singles World No.1s looked ready to turn their headline pairing into a title run. But the top seeds did not fold. They forced the match into a decider, stayed braver in the closing exchanges, and converted championship point at 10-8 in the fifth to seal the crown.

For Lim and Shin, the title closes a run built on pressure, chemistry and redemption. Twelve months ago in Las Vegas, they reached the US Smash Final and left one match short of the title. In Southern California, they came back, held their nerve against one of the most talked-about pairings in the draw, and turned last year’s unfinished business into the first title of US Smash 2026.

While Mixed Doubles delivered the first champions of the week, Singles kept ripping up the script.

MEN’S SINGLES DRAW HEADS INTO THE DANGER ZONE

The Men’s Singles Round of 16 has become a danger zone for headline names, and Day 6 added two more major exits to a draw already shaken by Wang Chuqin and Lin Shidong’s departures on Day 5.

Vladimir Sidorenko produced one of the biggest results of the event so far, taking down Tomokazu Harimoto 3-0 (11-8, 13-11, 11-8). Sidorenko has quietly built one of the most ruthless runs in Southern California: first Horacio Cifuentes, then Benedikt Duda, and now the No.2 seed Harimoto, all without dropping a game. Against Harimoto, there was nothing quiet about the statement. Sidorenko took the opener 11-8, edged a tight second 13-11, then finished the job 11-8 to remove one of the title favourites from the draw.

His Quarterfinal opponent will be Hiroto Shinozuka, who landed a major hit of his own by beating Hugo Calderano 3-1 (4-11, 11-9, 11-6, 11-3). Calderano carried huge weight in the Americas as one of the sport’s biggest global names and a headline player for fans across the region, but Shinozuka flipped the match after dropping the opening game, taking the next three 11-9, 11-6, 11-3. After beating Liam Pitchford in the opening round and surviving Wen Ruibo in the Round of 32, Shinozuka has now added Calderano to a run that looks more dangerous with every match.

That sets up one of the sharpest Quarterfinals on Day 7: Sidorenko against Shinozuka. One player has taken out Harimoto. The other has taken out Calderano. Only one gets to keep the run alive.

Jang Woojin also moved through, beating Yukiya Uda 3-1 (9-11, 11-8, 11-6, 11-8) to reach the Quarterfinals. Jang’s path has been built on control under pressure, from his five-game win over Patrick Franziska in the Round of 32 to a cleaner finish against Uda. Truls Moregard ended Kanak Jha’s home-soil surge, beating the American 3-1 to close out the remaining Men’s Singles Round of 16 slot. Jha had already given US Smash one of its loudest home moments by taking down Shunsuke Togami earlier in the draw, and he hit back hard in the second game against Moregard to keep the crowd alive. But the No.3 seed steadied the match, took control of the third, then held off Jha’s late push in the fourth to close it 11-3, 6-11, 11-5, 11-9.

The confirmed Men’s Singles Quarterfinal line-up is now loaded. Anders Lind, the player who removed defending champion Wang Chuqin, will face Sora Matsushima, who has yet to drop a game in the event. Felix Lebrun meets Alexis Lebrun in an all-French Quarterfinal carrying family history, national attention and a guaranteed French player in the Semifinals. Hiroto Shinozuka faces Vladimir Sidorenko in a clash of giant-killers, while Jang Woojin meets Truls Moregard in a match built for chaos.

WOMEN’S SINGLES DEFENDING CHAMPION EXITS

Women’s Singles brought its own championship-level shock.

Zhu Yuling, the defending US Smash champion and one of the defining stories of the 2025 edition in Las Vegas, is out. Last year, Zhu’s title run became a comeback story that travelled far beyond the scoreboard, capped by a fightback from 0-2 down against Chen Yi in the Final. This year, her defence ended in the Round of 16 as Joo Cheonhui delivered a 3-0 (11-4, 11-8, 15-13) win that hit hard across the draw.

Joo gave Zhu no time to settle, taking the opening game 11-4, then holding firm as the match tightened, closing 11-8, 15-13. For Zhu, the title defence ends before the Quarterfinals. For Joo, it is a massive step into the last eight, where she will face Wang Yidi next. Sun Yingsha continued her march with a 3-0 (11-8, 11-3, 11-5) win over Dina Meshref, keeping the top seed on course after earlier wins over Yangzi Liu and Nina Mittelham. Her next test will be Chen Xingtong, who moved past Qin Yuxuan in straight games (11-2, 11-5, 11-5). That Quarterfinal gives the Women’s Singles draw a heavyweight all-China clash, with Sun’s top-seed authority meeting Chen’s clean, controlled progression through the draw.

Wang Yidi also had to walk through fire to reach the Quarterfinals, surviving Sakura Yokoi 3-2 in one of the tightest Women’s Singles battles of the day. Yokoi, already one of the breakout wildcard stories of the draw, pushed Wang to the edge after turning the match around from a game down. But Wang found her response when it mattered, taking the fourth and then holding her nerve in the decider to close out a 15-13, 11-13, 7-11, 11-6, 11-9 win.

The confirmed Women’s Singles Quarterfinal line-up is now loaded. Sun Yingsha faces Chen Xingtong in an all-China clash between two players moving through the draw with cold control, while Joo Cheonhui meets Wang Yidi after sending defending champion Zhu Yuling out of US Smash and watching Wang survive Sakura Yokoi in a five-game fight. Hina Hayata meets Miwa Harimoto in an all-Japan showdown after both delivered statement 3-0 wins, while Kuai Man takes on Hitomi Sato in a sharp style clash between speed, aggression and one of the most dangerous wildcard runs of the event.

While Singles continued to bleed big names, the Men’s and Women’s Doubles events finished loading up for Independence Day.

FOURTH OF JULY DOUBLES FIREWORKS LOADING

In Men’s Doubles, top seeded pair Lin Shidong and Huang Youzheng are into the Final after a 3-0 win over Benedikt Duda and Dang Qiu. It was a clean, ruthless Semifinal performance, with the Chinese pair taking it 11-7, 11-8, 11-6 to book their place in Saturday’s title match.

They will face Wen Ruibo and Yuan Licen, who came through the lower half with a 3-0 (12-10, 11-8, 11-7) win over Lin Yun-Ju and Feng Yi-Hsin. That gives the Men’s Doubles Final an all-China finish on the Fourth of July, with Lin and Huang’s top-seed firepower meeting a pair that has cut through the draw with increasing authority.

Women’s Doubles will bring a different kind of headline to Saturday’s title session.

Wang Manyu and Kuai Man sealed their place in the Final after beating Wang Yidi and Chen Yi 3-0 (11-7, 11-6, 16-14). The matchup carried a strong US Smash thread, with the top seeded pair having won the Women’s Doubles title together in Las Vegas last year before standing on opposite sides of the table in Southern California. This time, Kuai moved forward with Wang Manyu.

Waiting for them are Miwa Harimoto and Hina Hayata, giving the Women’s Doubles Final a heavyweight China-Japan edge and another major title moment for Hayata and Harimoto, who are also still alive in the Singles draw.

With the first champions crowned, Singles Quarterfinals now locked in across key sections, and both Doubles Finals landing on Independence Day, US Smash 2026 is charging straight into a Grand Smash Finals weekend full of fireworks.

US Smash 2026 continues through 5 July at the Ontario Convention Center in Southern California. Tickets are available now at ussmash.com.