The 2026 tennis season has arrived, and it begins with a busy week that includes a pair of ATP 250 tournaments (Hong Kong and Brisbane) in addition to the United Cup team event that is already underway. Both Hong Kong and Brisbane boast fantastic fields by 250-point standards. Among the notable players taking the court are Daniil Medvedev, Grigor Dimitrov, Frances Tiafoe, Lorenzo Musetti, Alexander Bublik, and Andrey Rublev.
Here are my picks for the pair of 250s.
Bank of China Open
Where: Hong Kong, China
Surface: Hard
Top seed: Lorenzo Musetti
Defending champion: Alexandre Muller
Hong Kong won’t make quite as many headlines as Brisbane, but the 28-man draw is a decent one. Musetti, Bublik, Rublev, and Khachanov are the top four seeds with byes. A formidable unseeded crop is headlined by Marin Cilic, Miomir Kecmanovic, Jerry Shang, Botic van de Zandschulp, and Hong Kong’s own Coleman Wong.
With what is sure to be a raucous crowd behind him, an in-form Wong has a decent chance to reach at least the quarterfinals — at which point he would likely run into Musetti. Rublev also finds himself in the top half of the draw along with a pair of veterans who will go head-to-head right away in Cilic and Adrian Mannarino. Bublik, the No. 2 seed, could meet Botic van de Zandschulp in the last 16 and either Khachanov or defending champion Alexandre Muller in the semifinals.
Quarterfinal picks: Lorenzo Musetti over Coleman Wong, Nuno Borges over Fabian Marozsan, Karen Khachanov over Miomir Kecmanovic, and Alexander Bublik over Francisco Comesana
Semifinals: Musetti over Borges and Khachanov over Bublik
Final: Musetti over Khachanov
Brisbane International
Where: Brisbane, Australia
Surface: Hard
Top seed: Daniil Medvedev
Defending champion: Jiri Lehecka
You could actually make an argument that the unseeded players in Brisbane are better than the seeds. That’s just how deep the field is to begin the year Down Under. The unseeded contingent features Dimitrov, Kyrgios (probably not a good tennis player these days, but will at least attract fans), Frances Tiafoe, Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard, Tomas Machac, Sebastian Korda, and Brandon Nakashima. That’s not to say the seeded guys are slouches. Joining Medvedev on the list are Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, Tommy Paul, Jiri Lehecka, Denis Shapovalov, and NextGen ATP Finals champion Learner Tien.
Although Joao Fonseca has withdrawn due to a back injury, the top half of the draw still offers plenty of danger. Medvedev begins his title bid against Marton Fucsovics before possibly facing Tiafoe in round two, Reilly Opelka in the quarterfinals, and either Lehecka, Tien, or Korda in the semis. Near the bottom of the bracket, enticing first-round matchups include Davidovich Fokina vs. Nakashima, Paul vs. Mpetshi Perricard, and Dimitrov vs. Pablo Carreno Busta.
Quarterfinal picks: Daniil Medvedev over Matteo Arnaldi, Learner Tien over Jiri Lehecka, Cameron Norrie over Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard, and Alejandro Davidovich Fokina over Raphael Collignon
Semifinals: Medvedev over Tien and Davidovich Fokina over Norrie
Final: Medvedev over Davidovich Fokina
Ricky contributes to 10sballs.com and also maintains his own tennis website, The Grandstand. You can follow him on Twitter at @Dimonator.