Japan Open: Set to Make a Mark

Tomoka Miyazaki, face of Gen Z in Japanese women’s singles, is the prominent presence on the posters of the DAIHATSU Japan Open 2026. Her seniors Akane Yamaguchi and Nozomi Okuhara are still in the thick of things, but Miyazaki appeals to a different demographic.

However, there is one Gen Z talent coming to the Japan Open on the back of her biggest triumph — Riko Gunji, winner of the YONEX Canada Open earlier this month, her first HSBC BWF World Tour title.

Gunji was in fact World Junior champion three years before Miyazaki achieved the feat. Unlike Miyazaki, though, who had a steady path into her senior career, Gunji struggled to cope with the demands of the senior circuit and had to play her wares in the lower tiers before she became a regular presence at its elite end last year.

It was a year ago – at the Japan Open 2025 – that she had her breakthrough moment, making the semifinals of the Super 750 event.

“The biggest change I experienced was the Japan Open last year,” Gunji said. “It was the highest level I’d experienced. I trained before the tournament and I found out what I had to do. There were some things on which I had worked on intensively, and that made a big difference.

“When I was a junior, I enjoyed playing. It wasn’t the same in the seniors. When I went to the seniors, I felt I wasn’t good, and I didn’t enjoy training. But I could recognise the result of hard training – it would give good results. So we trained a lot, and I started to find joy in training and playing now.”

All along, she had one lode star – her senior Akane Yamaguchi, who she somewhat resembled in her junior years.

“When I was a junior player, she was my star, my idol, the one I wanted to reach,” said Gunji, coming across as an unabashed fan of the three-time world champion. “Now that I’ve come so far and I’m playing alongside her in the same team, I’m honoured. At the same time, she’s still my star. I’ve learnt a lot from her. We play together and train together.

“The most important thing I learnt from Yamaguchi is how play at the world stage, where there’s so much pressure. She experiences so much pressure because everyone expects her to win. But she still fights and she enjoys the game. In the beginning I felt that the pressure was great, and I couldn’t play my way. I’ve learnt a lot from her, and to enjoy and to play my best and enjoy it at the same time.”

On her return to her home event, Gunji faces Polina Buhrova; should she progress, she could run into either Chen Yu Fei or Supanida Katethong.

Meanwhile, yet another of Japan’s Gen Z talents, Hina Akechi, has a formidable task as she takes on top seed An Se Young.

In men’s singles, the prominent name missing is Viktor Lai, winner of the Indonesia Open. Top seed Shi Yu Qi runs into recently-crowned Canada Open champion Yudai Okimoto, while second seed Kunlavut Vitidsarn has an opening date with Ayush Shetty.

Men’s Doubles: Keiichiro Matsui/Kenya Mitsuhashi Women’s Doubles: Hathathip Mijad/N Tungkasatan Mixed Doubles: Liu Kuang Heng/Hsu Yin-Hui

Men’s Doubles: Kang Min Hyuk/Ki Dong Ju Women’s Doubles: Arisa Igarashi/Chiharu Shida Mixed Doubles: Jafar Hidayatullah/Felisha Pasaribu