Men's singles · Super 750

Christo Popov vs Koki Watanabe

Japan Open 2026 · Final · 19 Jul 2026

Christo Popov beat Koki Watanabe 21–11, 21–19 in the final of Japan Open 2026.

Player	Game 1	Game 2
Christo Popov FRA · World No. 5 Won	21	21
Koki Watanabe JPN · World No. 17	11	19

72 rallies tracked shot by shot by GGAB analysts.

Match facts

Tournament: Japan Open 2026
Round: Final
Date: 19 Jul 2026
Level: Super 750
Discipline: Men's singles
Shuttle: Yonex Tournament F-90Amazon

Players: background, rankings and kit
Fact	Christo Popov	Koki Watanabe
Country	FRA	JPN
Plays	Left-handed	Right-handed
Born	2002	1999
Height	1.79 m	1.66 m
Weight	Not known	65 kg
Ranking at the time	No. 5	No. 17
Career-high rank	No. 2men's singles, 2026	No. 11men's singles, 2024
Racket	Yonex Arcsaber 11 Pro Amazon	Not known
String	Yonex BG80 Amazon	Not known
Shoes	Not known	Not known
Kit source	Recorded for this match	Not known

Kit comes from sponsor lists and retailer listings. Pros change frames between seasons, so a current setup may differ from what was used in an older match. Amazon links are paid links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Tale of the tape

Christo Popov against Koki Watanabe: results, serves, striking side and shot direction.
Christo Popov	Stat	Koki Watanabe
Result
42	Points won	30
14	Winners	8
6	Errors forced	8
14	Unforced errors	22
33	Smashes	39
60%	Won on own serve	43%
Serve
95%	Short serves	97%
60%	To the body	33%
33%	To the middle	37%
7%	Out wide	30%
Striking side
54%	Forehand	56%
38%	Backhand	39%
8%	Around the head	5%
Direction
53%	Straight	56%
34%	Cross-court	34%
13%	Middle	10%

Serve rows are shares of each side's serves. Striking side and direction are shares of every other shot.

Match summary

Christo Popov dominated the first game with a decisive 8-point run from 13-11 that closed it out 21-11, establishing control through superior smash finishing. The second game proved tighter with three lead changes and Watanabe mounting a brief comeback to 18-17, but Popov held firm to win 21-19 and take the match. Popov's aggressive shot selection and smash efficiency proved the difference across both games, while Watanabe's net errors and inability to sustain pressure in crucial moments ultimately cost him the match.

Written by AI from the tracked data.

Point progression

Christo PopovKoki Watanabe

0510152021

Running score across 72 tracked rallies, Christo Popov against Koki Watanabe. Games closed 21–11, 21–19.

View game scores

Game	Christo Popov	Koki Watanabe
Game 1	21	11
Game 2	21	19

Rally length

Avg rally — by shots

11.5shots

Avg rally — by time

13.1sec

Rallies by length (shots)

1–2

3–4

5–8

9–14

15–20

21+

72 rallies tracked, most of them (33%) in the 5–8 shot band. The longest ran 67 shots.

View data

Length (shots)	Rallies	Avg seconds
1–2	3	4.7
3–4	13	5.7
5–8	24	8.6
9–14	19	12.6
15–20	5	17.2
21+	8	39.8

Shot patterns

Most common 3-shot runs

1.A1Backhand Clear Cross→B1Forehand Drop Straight→A1Forehand Lift Cross
Happened 3× out of 69 rallies
2.A1Backhand Lift Cross→B1Forehand Smash Straight→A1Forehand Block Straight
Happened 3× out of 69 rallies
3.A1Forehand Block Straight→B1Forehand Spin Net Straight→A1Forehand Lift Cross
Happened 3× out of 69 rallies
4.A1Forehand Drive Straight→B1Forehand Block Straight→A1Forehand Flat Push Straight
Happened 3× out of 69 rallies
5.B1Backhand Block Straight→A1Backhand Net Cross→B1Forehand Lift Cross
Happened 3× out of 69 rallies

Most common 5-shot runs

1.A1Backhand Drive Straight→B1Backhand Block Straight→A1Backhand Flat Push Straight→B1Around-the-Head Smash Straight→A1Backhand Lift Cross
Happened 2× out of 69 rallies
2.A1Long Serve Body→B1Forehand Drive Straight→A1Forehand Block Straight→B1Forehand Spin Net Straight→A1Forehand High Lift Straight
Happened 1× out of 69 rallies
3.A1Long Serve Body→B1Forehand Half Smash Straight→A1Forehand Block Straight→B1Forehand Block Straight→A1Forehand Lift Cross
Happened 1× out of 69 rallies
4.A1Short Serve Body→B1Backhand Drive Cross→A1Forehand Drive Cross→B1Around-the-Head Drive Straight→A1Backhand Block Straight
Happened 1× out of 69 rallies
5.A1Short Serve Body→B1Backhand Drive Straight→A1Backhand Clear Cross→B1Forehand Drop Straight→A1Forehand Lift Cross
Happened 1× out of 69 rallies

Who did what

Most winners

Christo Popov

Most errors forced

Koki Watanabe

Most unforced errors

Koki Watanabe

By player

Christo Popov

416 shots

Winners 14Forced 6Unforced 14

Most-used shots

click a bar

Of 416 shots Christo Popov played, the most used were lift (25%), block (17%) and net (17%).

View data

Shot	Share	Shots
Lift	25%	102
Block	17%	70
Net	17%	69
Serve	10%	42
Drive	10%	42
Drop	8%	35

Points won — by shot

click a bar

Smash

26%

My winner6Forced opp. error5Drew opp. unforced0

My winnerForced opp. errorDrew opp. unforced

Points Christo Popov won break down by the shot that ended them — led by smash (26%), block (19%) and lift (17%).

View data

Shot	Share
Smash	26%
Block	19%
Lift	17%
Net	17%
Brush	7%
Drop	5%
Serve	5%
Clear	2%
Drive	2%

Points lost — by shot

click a bar

Block

23%

Opp. winner0My forced error7My unforced error0

Opp. winnerMy forced errorMy unforced error

Points Christo Popov lost break down by the shot that ended them — led by block (23%), lift (23%) and kill (13%).

View data

Shot	Share
Block	23%
Lift	23%
Kill	13%
Drop	10%
Net	10%
Smash	10%
Drive	7%
Brush	3%

Rally outcome — points won

42 rallies

My winner33%
Forced opp. error14%
Drew opp. unforced52%

Of the 42 rallies Christo Popov won, 52% from drawing an opponent unforced error, 33% from their own winners and 14% from forcing an opponent error.

View data

Outcome	Share	Rallies
My winner	33%	14
Forced opp. error	14%	6
Drew opp. unforced	52%	22

Rally outcome — points lost

30 rallies

Opp. winner27%
My forced error27%
My unforced error47%

Of the 30 rallies Christo Popov lost, 47% from their own unforced errors, 27% from an opponent winner and 27% from their own forced errors.

View data

Outcome	Share	Rallies
Opp. winner	27%	8
My forced error	27%	8
My unforced error	47%	14

Koki Watanabe

410 shots

Winners 8Forced 8Unforced 22

Most-used shots

click a bar

Of 410 shots Koki Watanabe played, the most used were net (21%), lift (20%) and block (15%).

View data

Shot	Share	Shots
Net	21%	87
Lift	20%	80
Block	15%	61
Drop	10%	41
Smash	10%	39
Drive	10%	39

Points won — by shot

click a bar

Net

27%

My winner0Forced opp. error0Drew opp. unforced8

My winnerForced opp. errorDrew opp. unforced

Points Koki Watanabe won break down by the shot that ended them — led by net (27%), smash (20%) and drive (17%).

View data

Shot	Share
Net	27%
Smash	20%
Drive	17%
Kill	13%
Block	10%
Lift	7%
Clear	3%
Drop	3%

Points lost — by shot

click a bar

Net

24%

Opp. winner3My forced error0My unforced error7

Opp. winnerMy forced errorMy unforced error

Points Koki Watanabe lost break down by the shot that ended them — led by net (24%), lift (19%) and smash (19%).

View data

Shot	Share
Net	24%
Lift	19%
Smash	19%
Block	14%
Brush	10%
Drop	10%
Clear	2%
Drive	2%

Rally outcome — points won

30 rallies

My winner27%
Forced opp. error27%
Drew opp. unforced47%

Of the 30 rallies Koki Watanabe won, 47% from drawing an opponent unforced error, 27% from their own winners and 27% from forcing an opponent error.

View data

Outcome	Share	Rallies
My winner	27%	8
Forced opp. error	27%	8
Drew opp. unforced	47%	14

Rally outcome — points lost

42 rallies

Opp. winner33%
My forced error14%
My unforced error52%

Of the 42 rallies Koki Watanabe lost, 52% from their own unforced errors, 33% from an opponent winner and 14% from their own forced errors.

View data

Outcome	Share	Rallies
Opp. winner	33%	14
My forced error	14%	6
My unforced error	52%	22

Your game, this treatment

How does your game compare to Christo Popov?

Get this exact shot-by-shot breakdown for your own footage, then put your numbers side by side with the pro data on this page: errors, rally length, serves, shot mix and patterns.