Shanghai's premiere tennis event, the ATP World Tour Shanghai Rolex Shanghai Master returns to Shanghai after a 3 year Covid break, starting from October 2nd, out at the Qizhong Forest Sports City Tennis Center in Minhang.

Who's Playing?

Here's the bad news first: Both Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal won't be coming to Shanghai this year. Confirmed, however, are: Carlos Alcaraz (current rank #2), Daniil Medvedev (current rank #3), Alexander Zverev and China's own rising stars Zhang Zhizhen, Wu Yibing and Shang Juncheng. The singles main draw has been expanded to a massive 96 players from 56 the last time the tournament took place in Shanghai.

Here's the full schedule:

But You Might Get To See Federer

Retired, two-time Rolex Shanghai Masters champion, Roger Federer will be present (presumably at the Finals) as a guest of honor, titled a Rolex Shanghai Masters Icon Athlete for 2023.

What's the deal with tickets?

Shanghai is implementing a new policy where at larger events all participants are required to provide a real-name verification, meaning you have to upload ID and Passport information when buying tickets, and present those documents at the event. That also applies to the Tennis Masters cup, which - unfortunately - then excluded third party ticketing agencies such as SmartTicket. So, tickets are only available through their own WeChat channel. That's why we weren't able to sell tickets for it. Bummer.

Currently, it seems most cheaper tickets have sold out, but there are still some pricey VIP tickets available through the organizer's official WeChat account. Regular day Center Court VIP tickets for 600rmb. The cheapest ticket for the finals is 7.380rmb right now. Scan below to purchase those, then click "Services", then follow the steps.

With the new real-name verification in place, we probably wouldn't take the risk heading out there to hope for scalper tickets to be available at the door.

We have tickets for you.

If you haven't had any luck, here's another option:

Parkway Health celebrates becoming the official medical sponsor of the tournament with a lucky draw for SmartShanghai readers. Scan the code below and fill out the form for your chance to win 2 tickets for the Semi-finals and 2 tickets for the Final.

Winners will be announced on October 8 through Parkway's official WeChat account.

Getting There:

The Qizhong Forest Sports City Tennis Center is out there in Minhang. In previous years, it was possible to get pretty close with a Didi and then walk the rest. Alternatively, the closest metro to the stations are Zhuanqiao (颛桥) on Line 5 and Xinzhuang (莘庄) on Lines 1 and 5, with also regular shuttle buses to the stadium. Here's the schedule.