Kiora Kunimoto competing at the Rate Las Vegas Open.
Kiora Kunimoto competing at the Rate Las Vegas Open. PPA Tour

Kunimoto, Campbell set sights on first career PPA final

At almost every PPA Tour tournament, there’s at least one lower-seeded player who pulls off a notable upset that breaks one of the draws wide open.

At this week’s Rate Las Vegas Open presented by JOOLA, Luc Pham was the player to do that when he beat top-seeded Chris Haworth on Wednesday in the men’s singles Round of 16.

But as the week has gone on, the women’s singles draw has also opened up with some standout performances from Kiora Kunimoto and Cailyn Campbell.

The draw was already more open than usual with Anna Leigh Waters only playing doubles this week, but Kunimoto showed that no one is safe with an 11-8, 2-11, 11-5 victory over top seed Kate Fahey in the quarterfinals.

 

And on Grandstand Court, Campbell defeated No. 4 seed Chao Yi Wang 11-6, 11-3 to further break the draw open on the women’s side.

 

Both Kunimoto and Campbell, aged 16 and 18, respectively, have never made it to Championship Sunday at a main circuit PPA Tour event in the U.S.

But one of them will in Las Vegas, as they will face off in the semifinals on Saturday.

One match, one opportunity for both budding stars to continue building their legacies.

Tune in to Pickleballtv to catch all the semifinal action, with coverage starting at 3pm ET.