Jessie Irvine and Gabriel Tardio finished the Leapmotor Kuala Lumpur Cup 2026 with two gold medals apiece, won across the length of the final day.
Irvine took the first final of the day, the Women's Doubles with Alix Truong, coming from a game down against Sahra Dennehy and Danni-Elle Townsend to win 5-11, 11-5, 11-6. Two finals later she and Tardio won the Mixed Doubles together, trailing Townsend and Joseph Wild 7-2 in the deciding game before taking it 5-11, 11-3, 12-10.
Tardio closed the day with a second gold of his own, partnering Noe Khlif to the Men's Doubles title over second seeds Augustus Ge and Len Yang 11-9, 11-4.
A second Asia singles title for Shimabukuro
Tama Shimabukuro, 15, won the Men's Singles final 11-8, 11-5 against Khlif, adding to the title he won at the Macao Open in May. The defeat ended Khlif's bid to finish his Asia debut with a singles gold, though he left Kuala Lumpur with the Men's Doubles title.
TAMA SHIMABUKURO✓
NOE KHLIFChristian beats Buckner again
Top seed Kaitlyn Christian came from a game down to beat Brooke Buckner 9-11, 11-4, 11-5, a repeat of the result in the MB Hanoi Cup final in April. It was her third gold in Malaysia, after the Women's Singles and Women's Doubles at the Panas Malaysia Cup 2025.
How semifinal Saturday went
Sahra Dennehy went into Saturday alive in three events and came out of it with one final. Kaitlyn Christian beat her 11-6, 11-2 in the Women's Singles, and Danni-Elle Townsend and Joseph Wild beat her and Len Yang 11-9, 11-8 in the Mixed Doubles. She and Townsend came through the Women's Doubles semifinal 11-5, 7-11, 11-7, which was the final she then lost.
Tama Shimabukuro reached the singles final by beating Hong Kit Wong 11-7, 11-8, the same opponent he had beaten for the Macao title in May. Noe Khlif beat Harrison Brown 11-7, 11-0 in the other half, ending the run Brown had built through three full-distance wins.
No bronze medal matches were played
All five bronze medal matches at this stop are recorded as canceled on the official bracket, so no bronze medals are listed below.
Medal table
Event | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Final score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Men's Singles | Tama Shimabukuro (USA) | Noe Khlif (FRA) | not contested | 11-8, 11-5 |
Women's Singles | Kaitlyn Christian (USA) | Brooke Buckner (USA) | not contested | 9-11, 11-4, 11-5 |
Men's Doubles | Gabriel Tardio (BOL) / Noe Khlif (FRA) | Augustus Ge (USA) / Len Yang (USA) | not contested | 11-9, 11-4 |
Women's Doubles | Alix Truong (USA) / Jessie Irvine (USA) | Sahra Dennehy (AUS) / Danni-Elle Townsend (AUS) | not contested | 5-11, 11-5, 11-6 |
Mixed Doubles | Gabriel Tardio (BOL) / Jessie Irvine (USA) | Danni-Elle Townsend (AUS) / Joseph Wild (AUS) | not contested | 5-11, 11-3, 12-10 |
Every match from the semifinals on
Event | Round | Winner | Defeated | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Men's Singles | Semifinals | Noe Khlif (FRA) | Harrison Brown (AUS) | 11-7, 11-0 |
Men's Singles | Semifinals | Tama Shimabukuro (USA) | Hong Kit Wong (HKG) | 11-7, 11-8 |
Men's Singles | Final | Tama Shimabukuro (USA) | Noe Khlif (FRA) | 11-8, 11-5 |
Women's Singles | Semifinals | Brooke Buckner (USA) | Rika Fujiwara (JPN) | 11-7, 11-5 |
Women's Singles | Semifinals | Kaitlyn Christian (USA) | Sahra Dennehy (AUS) | 11-6, 11-2 |
Women's Singles | Final | Kaitlyn Christian (USA) | Brooke Buckner (USA) | 9-11, 11-4, 11-5 |
Men's Doubles | Semifinals | Augustus Ge (USA) / Len Yang (USA) | Yuta Funemizu (JPN) / Tama Shimabukuro (USA) | 9-11, 11-4, 11-5 |
Men's Doubles | Semifinals | Gabriel Tardio (BOL) / Noe Khlif (FRA) | Clayton Powell (USA) / Armaan Bhatia (IND) | 11-4, 11-2 |
Men's Doubles | Final | Gabriel Tardio (BOL) / Noe Khlif (FRA) | Augustus Ge (USA) / Len Yang (USA) | 11-9, 11-4 |
Women's Doubles | Semifinals | Alix Truong (USA) / Jessie Irvine (USA) | Chao Yi Wang (TPE) / Ting Chieh Wei (TPE) | 11-5, 11-5 |
Women's Doubles | Semifinals | Sahra Dennehy (AUS) / Danni-Elle Townsend (AUS) | Lacy Schneemann (USA) / Brooke Buckner (USA) | 11-5, 7-11, 11-7 |
Women's Doubles | Final | Alix Truong (USA) / Jessie Irvine (USA) | Sahra Dennehy (AUS) / Danni-Elle Townsend (AUS) | 5-11, 11-5, 11-6 |
Mixed Doubles | Semifinals | Danni-Elle Townsend (AUS) / Joseph Wild (AUS) | Sahra Dennehy (AUS) / Len Yang (USA) | 11-9, 11-8 |
Mixed Doubles | Semifinals | Gabriel Tardio (BOL) / Jessie Irvine (USA) | Chao Yi Wang (TPE) / Armaan Bhatia (IND) | 11-6, 11-9 |
Mixed Doubles | Final | Gabriel Tardio (BOL) / Jessie Irvine (USA) | Danni-Elle Townsend (AUS) / Joseph Wild (AUS) | 5-11, 11-3, 12-10 |
Next on the tour
The season finishes at the Hang Seng Bank Hong Kong Slam, the PPA Asia 1500 event at Kai Tak Arena from October 19 to 25. Tournament listings for Asia are at events.thepicklebase.com.
Common questions
Who won the Leapmotor Kuala Lumpur Cup 2026?
There were five champions. Tama Shimabukuro won the Men's Singles, Kaitlyn Christian the Women's Singles, Gabriel Tardio and Noe Khlif the Men's Doubles, Alix Truong and Jessie Irvine the Women's Doubles, and Tardio and Jessie Irvine the Mixed Doubles.
Why are there no bronze medallists?
The five bronze medal matches were canceled and do not appear as completed on the official bracket, so no third place is recorded for this stop.
How much prize money was on offer?
The tournament carried up to US$300,000 and 1000 ranking points for each champion, which makes it a PPA Asia 1000 stop.
More from the Leapmotor Kuala Lumpur Cup
Results verified against the official bracket on pickleballtournaments.com and the PPA Tour Asia tournament page. Photographs: PPA Tour Asia.