The 2026 World Tennis Masters Tour MT1000 Fox Ess Wenzhou opens at Wenzhou International Tennis Center. [Photo/Wenzhou News Media Center]

The 2026 World Tennis Masters Tour MT1000 Fox Ess Wenzhou opened at Wenzhou International Tennis Center in Zhejiang province on Nov 9, drawing nearly 700 players from 38 countries and regions, including about 100 international players. It is the first MT1000-level event in China and the country's only stop.

The World Tennis Masters Tour has five levels from MT100 to MT1000, with MT1000 the highest. The five-day competition has eight age groups and 36 events, with total prize money of 600,000 yuan (about $90,000).

Players attended a welcome dinner on Nov 8 that featured Wenzhou specialty dishes, as well as cultural heritage like paper-cutting, rice sculpture, and Ouju Opera performances. The third Wenzhou Tennis Market also opened alongside it, with the city launching a travel route and consumption packages.

After first hosting MT400 in 2023, Wenzhou improved player shuttle services, venue scheduling, market organization, and tourism routes, rising to MT700 and now MT1000 in four years.

The Wenzhou stop won the World Tennis' Event Recognition Award in 2024 and 2025, becoming the only stop in the Chinese mainland to receive the honor two years in a row. Players' satisfaction determines the award, and only 5 to 10 percent of stops worldwide receive it.